MANUAL 


.RM  GRASSES 


HITCHCOCK 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 

GIFT  OF 


A  MANUAL  OF 

FARM  GRASSES 


A  BY 

A.  S. /HITCHCOCK 

Systematic    Agrostologist,    United    States    Department   of   Agriculture, 

Washington,  D.  C.;  formerly  Professor  of  Botany  in  the 

Kansas  State  Agricultural  College 


PUBLISHED  BY  TEE  AUTHOR 

WASHINGTON,  D.  C. 

1921 


Copyright,   1921 
BY  A.  S.  HITCHCOCK 


SB 

#7 

M^M- 

PREFACE 

The  forage  grasses  are  of  great  interest  to  the  farmer, 
and  the  grass  crop  is  in  the  aggregate  one  of  the  most 
important  grown  upon  the  farm.  The  grasses  and  the 
clovers,  including  alfalfa,  are  the  basis  of  the  stock 
industry.  The  call  for  authentic  information  upon  the 
forage  grasses  has  been  extended  and  insistent.  In  the 
present  volume  an  attempt  has  been  made  to  supply  to 
the  farmer,  ranchman,  and  stockman,  and  also  to  the 
agriculturist  and  experiment  station  worker,  a  com- 
pendium of  information  on  the  grasses  used  for  forage. 
The  book  is  intended  primarily  to  give  information  by 
which  the  cultivated  grasses  may  be  identified,  and  by 
which  one  may  determine  their  range,  adaptibility,  and 
uses.  Secondary  to  this  is  information  on  the  culture  of 
the  grasses. 

To  aid  in  the  identification  of  the  grasses  the  descrip- 
tions are  supplemented  by  drawings  from  nature  by  Mrs. 
Mary  Wright  Gill,  the  well-known  agrostological  artist. 

In  addition  to  the  information  on  the  forage  grasses 
there  has  been  added  a  brief  account  of  grasses  used  for 
other  purposes,  such  as  lawns  and  ornamentals. 

A.  S.  HITCHCOCK 
1867  PARK  ROAD, 
WASHINGTON,  D.  C., 
October  i,  1920 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  I 

PAGES 
INTRODUCTION 1-3 

CHAPTER   II 

STATISTICS  OF  THE  GRASS  CROP 4-9 

The  value,  acreage,  and  distribution  of  grass 
crops  in  the  United  States,  based  upon  the 
figures  of  the  Thirteenth  Census. 

CHAPTER   III 

GENERAL  REMARKS  ON  FORAGE  GRASSES 10-29 

Classification  of  Forage  Plants 10-12 

Grasses,    10 — -Legumes,    n — Other    forage 
plants,  12. 

Forage  Crop  Areas 12-15 

Cool  Humid  Region,  12 — Warm  Humid  Re- 
gion, 13 — Semiarid  Region,  14 — Arid  Re- 
gion, 15— Region  of  winter  rains,  15. 

Uses  of  Forage  Plants 16-27 

Pastures,  16 — Permanent  pasture,  18 — 
Meadows,  22 — Wild  hay,  22 — Grain  hay, 
23— Legume  hay,  23 — Coarse  hay  or  fodder, 
24 — Millet,  25 — Ordinary  meadow  hay,  26 — 
Soiling,  26 — Silage,  27. 


vi  CONTENTS 

Nomenclature  of  Grasses 27-29 


CHAPTER   IV 

PAGES 

CULTURE  OF  GRASSES 30-43 

General  Principles,  30 — Preparation  of  the 
soil,  30 — Sowing  the  seed,  31 — Care  of  pas- 
tures, 32 — Care  of  meadows,  34 — Making 
hay,  34 — Grass  in  rotation,  36 — Grass  seed, 
37- 

CHAPTER  V 

THE  STRUCTURE  OF  GRASSES 44~52 

Roots  and  rootstocks,  45 — Stem  and  leaves, 
46 — Flowers  and  seed,  48. 

CHAPTER  VI 

THE  THREE  LEADING  FORAGE  GRASSES 53-76 

Timothy 53~57 

Timothy  as  a  meadow  grass,  55 — Descrip- 
tion, 57. 

Bluegrass 58-70 

Bluegrass  for  pasture,  59 — Bluegrass  for 
lawns,  60 — Making  a  bluegrass  lawn,  61 — 
Lawn  weeds,  65 — Bluegrass  seed,  66 — Blue- 
grass  as  a  weed,  67 — Description,  67. 

Bermuda  Grass 70-76 

Bermuda  as  a  pasture  grass,  71 — Bermuda 
for  lawns,  72 — Methods  of  eradication,  73 — 
Description,  74. 


CONTENTS  vii 

CHAPTER  VII 

PAGES 

OTHER  IMPORTANT  FORAGE  GRASSES 77~9i 

Redtop,  77 — Orchard  grass,  80 — Meadow 
fescue,  83 — Johnson  grass,  85 — Brome  grass, 
89. 

CHAPTER  VIII 

GRASSES  OF  MINOR  IMPORTANCE 92-118 

Rhode  Island  bent  and  carpet  bent,  92— 
Rye  grasses,  95 — Tall  oat  grass,  99 — Canada 
bluegrass,  100 — Sweet  vernal  grass,  102 — 
Velvet  grass,  103 — St.  Augustine  grass,  104 
— Carpet  grass,  105 — Rescue  grass,  107 — 
Guinea  grass,  107 — Para  grass,  107 — The 
fescue  grasses,  109 — Rhodes  grass,  in — 
Natal  grass,  112 — Slender  wheat  grass,  113 
— A  few  other  grasses,  114. 

CHAPTER    IX 

ANNUAL  FORAGE  CROPS 1 19-134 

Common  millet,  119 — Proso  millet,  122 — 
Japanese  barnyard  millet,  124 — Pearl  millet, 
126 — The  sorghums,  126 — Sudan  grass,  130 
— Teosinte,  131 — Corn,  132 — The  small 
grains,  133 — Chess  or  cheat,  133. 

CHAPTER  X 

NATIVE  FORAGE  GRASSES 135-151 

Plains,  136 — Valleys,  139 — Deserts,  142 — 
Humid  forests,  144 — Mountain  meadows, 


viii  CONTENTS 

PAGES 

145 — Wild  hay,  146 — Cultivated  native 
grasses  147. 

CHAPTER   XI 

OTHER  ECONOMIC  GRASSES 151-158 

Lawn  grasses,  151 — Ornamentals,  153 — 
Sand  binders,  156 — Fiber  grasses,  157 — 
Sugar-producing  grasses,  157. 

CHAPTER  XII 

WEEDY  GRASSES 159-167 

Eradication  of  quack  grass,  160 — Annual 
weeds,  162 — Weeds  upon  the  range,  166. 


LIST  OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 

FIG.  PAGES 

1.  Magnifying  glass  for  examining  seeds 39 

2.  Seeds  of  some  common  grasses 40 

3.  Spikelet  of  wheat 49 

4.  Timothy 57 

5.  Kentucky  Bluegrass 68 

6.  Bermuda  Grass 74 

7.  Redtop 78 

8.  Orchard  Grass .- 82 

9.  Meadow  Fescue 84 

10.  Johnson  Grass 88 

1 1 .  Brome  Grass 90 

12.  Rhode  Island  Bent 94 

13.  Italian  Rye  Grass 97 

14.  Perennial  Rye  Grass 98 

15.  Tall  Oat  Grass 100 

16.  Canada  Bluegrass 101 

17.  Sweet  Vernal  Grass 102 

18.  Velvet  Grass 103 

19.  St.  Augustine  Grass 104 

20.  Carpet  Grass 106 

2 1 .  Rescue  Grass : 108 

22.  Sheep's  Fescue no 

23.  Rhodes  Grass 112 

24.  Natal  Grass 113 

25.  Paspalum  dilatatum 115 

26.  German  millet.  .  .121 


X  LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 

FIG.  PAGES 

27.  Hungarian  Grass 122 

28.  Proso  Millet 123 

29.  Japanese  Barnyard  Millet 125 

30.  Pearl  Millet 126 

31.  Buffalo  Grass 136 

32.  Grama  Grass 137 

33.  Curly  Mesquite 138 

34.  Big  Bluestem 141 

35.  Quack  Grass 160 

36.  Crab  grass 163 


CHAPTER  I 

INTRODUCTION 

IN  all  parts  of  the  United  States,  forage  plants  are  an 
important  element  in  all  kinds  of  farming  that  involve 
live  stock.  Even  on  farms  devoted  to  special  crops  such 
as  vegetables  or  fruits  the  use  of  farm  animals  may  bring 
the  question  of  forage  into  the  foreground.  For  these 
reasons  nearly  all  farmers  and  stockmen  are  interested 
in  grasses.  In  those  regions  that  have  been  long  settled, 
farm  practice  has  included  the  use  of  certain  grasses,  the 
kind  depending  upon  the  region.  The  farmer  is  familiar 
with  these  grasses  and  understands  their  use  and  may 
need  no  further  information  upon  these.  It  often  hap- 
pens, however,  that  the  farmer  wishes  to  try  other  kinds 
of  grasses  of  which  he  has  heard  but  with  which  he  is  not 
familiar.  He  may  have  read  about  them  in  farm  journals 
or  he  may  have  seen  them  advertised  in  seed  catalogues. 
Interested  dealers  or  growers  may,  in  their  enthusiasm 
or  greed,  honestly  or  dishonestly  recommend  them  in 
flamboyant  language  or  with  exaggerated  praise. 

It  is  hoped  that  the  present  work  will  give  information 
that  will  enable  the  farmer  to  form  a  correct  judgement 
as  to  the  value  of  particular  kinds  of  grasses  for  his  con- 
ditions. Some  kinds  of  grass  are  well  suited  to  one  set 
of  conditions  but  entirely  unsuited  to  others  and  no  grass 
is  suited  to  alj  £he  various  conditions  found  throughout 


2  A   MANUAL    OF   FARM    GRASSES 

the  country.  The  reader  who  wishes  to  try  new  or  un- 
familiar kinds  of  grass  should  study  the  chapter  on  crop 
areas  and  then  read  what  is  said  about  this  grass  under 
the  chapter  or  paragraph  devoted  to  it.  All  kinds  of 
grasses  known  to  have  any  value  anywhere  in  the  United 
States,  are  here  described  and  also  several  kinds  that  are 
practically  valueless  anywhere,  but  which  have  been  re- 
ferred to  in  agricultural  works  or  have  been  offered  for 
sale  by  seedsmen. 

Sometimes  an  old  grass  is  advertised  under  a  new  name 
and  thus  exploited.  Many  are  familiar  with  the  frequent 
thrusting  into  notoriety  of  new  kinds  of  wheat  such  as 
mummy  wheat,  Alaska  wheat,  and  Egyptian  wheat, 
with  marvelous  tales  of  high  yield,  but  which  upon  ex- 
amination by  experts  prove  to  be  old  varieties  which  have 
no  especially  good  qualities  to  recommend  them.  Billion 
dollar  grass  was  exploited  at  one  time  in  this  way.  It  is 
well  to  be  on  guard  against  deception  or  honest  but 
unwarranted  enthusiasm. 

The  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture  and  the  State 
Experiment  Stations  have  sought  out  grasses  from  all 
over  the  world  and  carefully  tested  them,  and  the  possi- 
bilities of  all  kinds  are  pretty  well  known.  The  prob- 
ability of  some  new  kind  coming  suddenly  into  use  is  very 
slight.  Hence,  exploitation  of  a  supposedly  new  kind  of 
grass  by  interested  persons  should  be  looked  upon  with 
suspicion  and  the  claims  made  for  it  subjected  to  the 
•  keenest  scrutiny. 

The  farmer  should  endeavor  to  grow  the  grass  best 
suited  to  his  conditions.  Even  on  the  same  farm  the 
conditions  may  vary  so  much  that  one  kind  of  grass  may 


INTRODUCTION  3 

succeed  in  one  part  but  fail  in  another  part,  while  in  this 
second  place  another  sort  may  succeed.  Every  grass  has 
its  good  points  and  its  bad  points.  It  should  be  the 
endeavor  of  the  farmer  to  learn  these  points  and  it  is 
hoped  that  this  book  may  aid  him  in  the  attempt. 


CHAPTER   II 
STATISTICS   OF  THE   GRASS   CROP 

THE  value  of  the  grass  crop  of  the  United  States  is 
much  greater  than  is  generally  supposed.  A  large  pro- 
portion is  fed  upon  the  farm  and  thus  does  not  directly 
swell  the  cash  income.  The  figures  given  below  are  all 
taken  from  the  report  of  the  thirteenth  census.  The 
total  value  of  all  farm  crops  produced  in  the  United 
States  in  1909  was  $5487,161,000.  Of  this  amount  the 
cereals  take  the  lead  with  a  total  value  of  $2,665,539,714. 
The  values  of  the  cotton  crop  and  of  the  hay  and  forage 
crop  are  about  equal,  being  respectively  $824,696,287 
and  $824,004,887,  and  hence  divide  honors  for  second  and 
third  place.  The  other  crops  are  much  less.  It  must  be 
remembered  that  the  statistics  do  not  include  the  value 

TABLE  I 

PRODUCTION  (TONS)  OF  HAY  AND  FORAGE  OF  THE  TWENTY 
LEADING  STATES  IN  1909 


i  .  Iowa  
2.  New  York  .  .  . 
3.  Minnesota  .  .  . 
4.  Kansas  
5.  Nebraska 

7,823,181 
...7,055,429 
...6,036,747 

•      -5,936,997 
.  .  .  .5,776,475 

1  1  .  Pennsylvania  .  . 
12.  South  Dakota  . 
13.  Michigan  
14.  North  Dakota  . 
15.  Indiana 

-  -3,677,307 
.3,651,024 

-3,632,939 
.  .  .3,010,401 

2  880  104 

6.  Wisconsin  .  .  . 
7-  Ohio  
8.  Illinois  ...'... 

.  .  .  5,002,644 
...4,521,409 
....  4,354,466 

1  6.  Colorado  
17.  Montana  
1  8.  Oregon 

.  .2,241,566 
..1,692,656 
I  587  706 

9.  California 
jo.  Missouri  

•4,327,130 
...4,091,342 

19.  Idaho  
20.  Vermont  

•  •  *  »0°/  ,  /y1-' 
-•1,584,365 
-  -I,  502,730 

STATISTICS   OF   THE    GRASS   CROP  5 

of  pasture  and  range  which,  if  added,  would  place  the 
value  of  forage  far  above  that  of  cotton.  The  total  acre- 
age of  grassland  as  reported  by  the  census  was  72,280,776 
and  the  total  production  97,454,000  tons,  the  average 
yield  thus  being  i  .35  tons  per  acre.  The  preceding  table 
shows  the  production  of  hay  and  forage  for  the  20 
leading  states. 

Six  other  states  had  a  production  exceeding  1,000,000 
tons. 

The  value  of  the  hay  and  forage  crop  varies  according 
to  the  kind,  consequently  in  the  table  showing  this  the 
sequence  of  states  is  somewhat  altered. 

TABLE  II 


VALUE  IN  Doi 

i.  New  York.  .. 
2.  Iowa  
3.  Pennsylvania 
4.  Ohio 

JLARS  OF  HAY  AND  FORAGE  OF  THE 
LEADING  STATES  IN  1909 
•  -$77,360,645       ii.  Nebraska  
.  .    59,360,225       12.  Minnesota  .... 
•  •   45,623,573       13-  Indiana  
•  •   42,357,364       14.  Colorado  
.  ..   42,187,215       15.  Washington... 
.  .  .   40,866,396       16.  Vermont  
.  .  .   40,560,220       17.  South  Dakota  . 
.  .  .   36,040,087       1  8.  Oregon  
.  .  .   33,845,094       19.  Maine  
•  •  •   32,033,954      20.  Texas  

TWENTY 

.$31,729,691 
.  26,724,801 
.   24,883,461 
.   17,282,276 
.    17,147,648 
•   16,335,530 
.    15,243,664 

•    15,225,957 
.   15,115,821 
.   12,824,433 

5.  California.  .  . 
6.  Wisconsin  .  . 
7.  Illinois  
8.  Michigan  .  .  . 
9.  Missouri.  .  .  . 
10.  Kansas  

Seven  other  states  produced  a  crop  valued  at  more 
than  $10,000,000. 

The  kind  of  forage  produced  is  of  great  interest  but  the 
Census  Report  does  not  classify  very  closely  in  this 
respect. 

Table  III  gives  the  results  so  far  as  the  classification 
extends. 


A    MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


TABLE  III 

ACREAGE,  PRODUCTION,  AND  VALUE  OF  HAY  AND  FORAGE 
FOR  1901  BY  CLASSES 


Acres 

Production 
(Tons) 

Value  (Dollars^ 

Timothy  alone  

14,686,393 

17,985,420 

$188,082,895 

Timothy  and  Clover  mixed  . 

19,542,382 

24,748,555 

257,280,330 

Clover  alone  

2,443,263 

3,158,324 

29,334,356 

Alfalfa  

4,707,146 

11,859,881 

93,103,998 

Millet  or  Hungarian  grass  .  . 

1,117,769 

1,546,533 

11,145,226 

Other  tame  or  cultivated 

grasses  

4,218,957 

4,166,772 

44,408,775 

Wild,  salt,  or  prarrie  grasses  . 

17,186,522 

18,383,574 

91,026,169 

Grains  cut  green  

4,324,878 

5,367,292 

61,686,131 

Coarse  forage  

4,034,432 

9,982,305 

46,753,262 

The  taking  of  a  census  is  an  enormous  task.  All 
farmers  are  aware  of  the  number  and  variety  of  questions 
asked  by  the  enumerators.  At  each  census  a  greater 
variety  of  statistics  is  gathered  than  at  the  preceding, 
and  we  may  hope  that  in  future  censuses  a  still  further 
classification  of  the  forage  crops  may  be  possible.  The 
instructions  issued  to  the  census  clerks  contain  the  fol- 
lowing in  regard  to  hay  and  forage  crops: 

(a)  Tabulate  as  "clover  alone"  all  crops  reported  after  that 
designation,  as  well  as  all  reported  as  "alsike,"  "red  clover," 
"crimson  clover;"  also  other  clovers  unmixed  with  other 
grasses.  The  same  crops  reported  as  mixed  with  timothy  or 
herd's  grass  should  be  tabulated  as  "timothy  and  clover 
mixed."  When  reported  as  mixed  with  grasses  other  than 
timothy  or  herd's-grass,  they  should  be  tabulated  as  "other 
tame  or  cultivated  grasses." 

(6)  Tabulate  as  "other  lame  or  cultivated  grasses"  all 
crops  reported  after  that  designation,  as  well  as  all  reported 
as  "redtop,"  "June-grass,"  "orchard-grass,"  "blue-grass," 
and  "Johnson-grass;"  also  all  combinations  of  these  grasses 
with  any  of  the  clover  crops  mentioned  in  paragraph  a, 
preceding,  or  with  timothy. 


STATISTICS   OF   THE    GRASS   CROP  7 

(c)  Tabulate  as  "wild,  salt,  or  prairie  grasses"  all  crops 
reported  after  that  designation,   as  well  as  all  reported  as 
"marsh-grass,"  "swamp-grass,"  "slough-grass,"  "bluestem," 
"daisies,"  and  "butter-cups." 

(d)  Tabulate  as  "grains  cut  green"  all  crops  reported  after 
that  designation  without  specific  names,  or  with  the  name 
"oats,"    "wheat,"    "barley,"    "rye,"    "peas,"    "cowpeas," 

."soybeans,"  " velvetbeans,"  or  "vetches."  Keep  a  memo- 
randum of  the  names  of  all  crops  reported  with  specific  names 
and  tabulated  as  "grains  cut  green." 

(e)  Tabulate  as  "coarse  forage"  all  crops  reported  after 
that  designation  without  specific  names,  or  with  the  name 
"corn,"   "sweet  corn,"   "cane,"   "sorghum,"   "Kafir  corn," 
"Jerusalem  corn,"  "milo  maize,"  or  kindred  crops. 

It  will  be  seen  from  this  that  the  classification  is  only 
approximate.  The  following  tables  show  the  relative 
importance  of  the  different  kinds  of  forage  in  the  different 
regions  of  the  United  States. 

TABLE  IV 

THE  PRODUCTION  (TONS)  OF  HAY  AND  FORAGE  FOR  1909,  BY  THE 
TEN  LEADING  STATES,  OF  EACH  KIND  OF  FORAGE 


I.  Ohio  
2.  Iowa  

Timothy 
.  .  .  2,348,660         6.  Pennsylvania  .  . 
I  952  956         7    New  York 

.  .  .1,200,073 
I  1  59  08  ^ 

3.  Illinois  
4.  Indiana  
5.  Missouri  

I  .  Iowa 

.  .  .  1,947,572         8.  Wisconsin  .... 
.  .  .1,442,218         9.  Minnesota.  .  .  . 
•  •  •  1.334,556       10.  Michigan  

Timothy  and  clover  mixed 
3  732  1  86         6    Missouri 

•  •  •  L  »  *  OVt^^O 

.  .  .  1,110,446 
.  .  .1,101,510 
...     929,165 

.1,630,21  i 

2.  New  York  .... 
3.  Wisconsin  .  .  .  . 
4.  Michigan  

...3,215,021         7.   Minnesota.... 
.  .  .2,477,311         8.  Ohio  
.  .  .  1,991,618         9.  Illinois  

-..1,433,075 
...1,346,347 
1,123,254 

5.  Pennsylvania.  . 

.  .  .  1,830,852       10.  Vermont  

.  .     628,098 

A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


Clover  alone 

I.  Illinois  

•  •  •    539.79°        6.  Tennessee  

.     201,926 

2.  Indiana  

314,818        7.  Iowa.  

195,579 

3.  Missouri  

.  .  .     309,209         8.  Wisconsin  

.     193,786 

4.  Ohio  

.  .  .    239,492     .   9.  New  York  

.     114,864 

5.  Michigan  

.  .  .     216,862       10.  Minnesota  

106,334 

Alfalfa 

i  .  Kansas  

.  .  .  1,998,689        6.  Utah  

•     791,355 

2.  California  

.  .  .  1,639,707         7.  Montana  

599,747 

3.  Nebraska  

.  .  .  1,522,136         8.  Wyoming  

397,669 

4.  Colorado  

.  .  .  1,265,915         9.  Oregon  .  .  ,  .* 

•     375,445 

5.  Idaho  

.  .  .    964,529       10.  Washington  

-    357,595 

Millet  or  Hungarian  grass 

I.  Kansas  

.  .  .  .    290,661         6.  Tennessee  

76,311 

2.  Nebraska  

.  .  .  .     160,684         7.  Oklahoma  

75,591 

3.  North  Dakota 

.  .  .  .     149,429        8.  South  Dakota  .  .  . 

65,844 

4.  Missouri  

.  .  .  .     141,626        9.   Iowa  

54,346 

5-  Texas  

95.352       i°-  Minnesota  

-       50,383 

Other  tame  or  cultivated  grasses 

I.  New  York... 

.  .  .  .    412,479         6.  Connecticut  

•     159,365 

2.  Maine  

-    -     258,789         7.  Massachusetts.  .. 

•     150,723 

3.  Tennessee  ,  .  . 

.  .  ..    218,482        8.  Kentucky  

-     139,382 

4.  Minnesota  .  .  . 

.  .  .  .     188,371        9.  Texas  

•     138,758 

5.  Vermont  

.  .  .     160,014       I0-  New  Hampshire  . 

.     131,621 

Wild,  salt,  or  prairie  grasses 

I  .  Nebraska  .... 

•  •  •  -3.097,822        6.  Iowa  .  .  .  '.  

.1,178,000 

2.  South  Dakota 

.  .  .  .2,798,263        7.  Oklahoma  

.    607,120 

3.  Minnesota  .  .  . 

.    .  .2,714,121         8.  Montana  

-    589,860 

4.  North  Dakota 

.    .  .2,372,618         9.  Wisconsin  

•    497,622 

5.  Kansas  

*,  737,632       10.  Colorado  

.    368,408 

Grains  cut  green 

I.  California.  .  .  . 

.  .  .2,019,526        6.  South  Carolina  .  . 

•     133,996 

2.  Oregon  

....    509,030        7.  Georgia  

.     128,929 

3.  Washington  .  . 

•    499,955         8.  Louisiana  

.     127,126 

4.  Idaho  

.     140,098         9.  North  Carolina  .  . 

.     118,687 

5.  Tennessee  .  .  . 

136,674       10.  Illinois  

.      99,828 

STATISTICS    OF   THE    GRASS    CROP 
Coarse  forage 


i  .   Xe\v  York  .  .  . 

1,876,795 

6.  Vermont  

.  .     452,461 

2.   Kansas  

.  .  .  .1,263,231 

7.  Ohio  

...     443,512 

3.  Texas  

.  ...    688,274 

8.  Pennsylvania  .  .  . 

•  •     422,925 

4.  Wisconsin  .  .  .  . 

-     57i,44i 

9.  Minnesota  

.  .     401,614 

5-  Iowa  

510,184 

10.  Michigan  

•    379,279 

From  Table  IV  it  is  seen  that  timothy  and  clover  are 
the  most  important  cultivated  forage  crops.  These  are 
grown  mainly  in  the  "humid  region,"  usually  known  as 
the  timothy  region.  Next  in  importance  is  the  wild  hay 
crop  which  comes  mostly  from  the  eastern  portion  of  the 
Great  Plains,  the  chief  constituent  being  prairie  hay. 

The  alfalfa  crop  comes  from  the  western  states  where 
irrigation  is  practiced,  though  it  is  worthy  of  note  that  in 
the  leading  state,  Kansas,  much  of  the  crop  is  grown 
without  irrigation.  Millet  comes  mostly  from  the  east- 
ern belt  of  the  Great  Plains.  Under  the  head  of  "other 
tame  or  cultivated  grasses,"  the  most  important  ele- 
ments are  redtop,  grown  in  the  northeastern  states, 
Johnson  grass,  in  Texas  and  some  other  southern  states, 
and  orchard  grass,  in  Tennessee  and  Kentucky.  Under 
the  head  of  "grains  cut  green,"  are  two  important  ele- 
ments, grain  hay  on  the  Pacific  Coast,  and  the  cowpea 
in  the  Southern  States.  The  Canada  field  pea  is  an  im- 
portant crop  along  our  northern  border.  Under  "coarse 
forage"  are  included  corn  and  sorghum  cut  for  forage. 
The  tables  should  be  studied  in  connection  with  the 
chapter  on  Forage  Crop  Areas. 


CHAPTER  III 

GENERAL  REMARKS   ON   FORAGE   GRASSES 

IN  order  to  understand  the  relation  between  the  differ- 
ent kinds  of  grasses  grown  for  forage  and  the  conditions 
suited  to  their  culture  it  is  necessary'  to  keep  in  mind  the 
uses  to  which  the  grass  crop  is  put  and  the  conditions 
which  must  be  met  by  the  crop  in  different  parts  of  the 
United  States.  The  classification  of  the  forage  crops 
will  first  be  set  forth  and  then  the  classification  of  the 
crop  areas. 

CLASSIFICATION  OF  FORAGE  PLANTS 
Forage  plants  are  those  whose  foliage  or  green  portions 
furnish  food  for  stock.  The  plants  cultivated  for  forage 
belong,  for  the  most  part,  to  two  natural  groups  or 
families,  the  grasses  (Gramineae)  and  the  legumes 
(Leguminosae).  A  few  forage  plants  belong  to  other 
groups. 

GRASSES 

The  grass  family  comprises  a  large  and  important 
group  of  plants,  found  growing  in  all  parts  of  the  world 
where  any  vegetation  is  possible,  from  sea  level  to  the 
limits  of  perpetual  snow  in  the  highest  mountains,  from 
the  tropics  to  the  north  and  south  polar  regions,  in  the 
humid  rain-forest,  the  vast  steppes  and  arid  plains,  and 
the  sandy  wastes  and  rocky  cliffs  of  all  altitudes  and 
latitudes.  Grasses  are  the  predominating  .vegetation  on 


GENERAL   REMARKS   ON   FORAGE   GRASSES  II 

all  open  land  known  under  the  general  name  of  plains, 
an  example  of  which  is  the  area  called  the  Great  Plains 
of  North  America.  Other  areas  of  this  kind  are  the 
steppes  of  Russia,  and  the  llanos  and  pampas  of  South 
America.  Grazing  animals  feed  upon  many  kinds,  of 
plants  but  of  these  the  grasses  are  by  far  the  most 
important. 

The  grasses  are  distinguished  by  having  narrow  leaves 
arranged  in  two  rows  or  ranks,  by  having  small  greenish 
flowers  usually  in  heads  or  panicles,  and  by  the  fruit  or 
seed  which  is  a  grain  like  the  kernel  of  wheat  or  seed  of 
timothy.  To  the  grass  family  belong  the  common 
meadow  and  pasture  grasses,  such  as  timothy,  red  top, 
and  bluegrass,  the  cereals,  such  as  wheat  and  rice,  and 
also  certain  larger  plants  such  as,  corn,  sorghum,  and 
sugar  cane.  The  sedges  and  rushes  often  have  grass-like 
leaves  but  are  distinguished  from  the  grass  family  by  the 
structure  of  the  flowers  and  fruit.  The  sedges  that  most 
closely  resemble  grasses  in  general  appearance  can  be 
distinguished  by  their  3-sided  stems  and  3-ranked  leaves. 
In  general  the  sedges  inhabit  marshes  and  other  wet 
places  and  are  of  little  value  as  forage. 

LEGUMES 

The  legumes  are  plants  bearing  pods  and  peculiarly 
shaped  flowers  like  those  of  the  pea.  They  usually  have 
compound  leaves.  Well  known  plants  of  the  legume 
family  are  the  clovers,  alfalfa,  peas,  beans,  and  vetches. 
The  especial  value  of  the  legumes  lies  in  the  fact  that  the 
forage  is  highly  nutritious,  being  rich  in  the  nitrogenous 
compounds  called  proteids.  Not  only  are  they  valuable 


12  A  MANUAL  OF   FARM   GRASSES 

as  forage,  but  they  enrich  the  land  upon  which  they  are 
grown.  By  means  of  bacteria-like  organisms  inhabiting 
the  nodules  upon  the  roots,  leguminous  plants  are  able  to 
gather  nitrogen  from  the  air.  Part  of  this  accumulated 
nitrogen  is  stored  in  the  foliage  but  a  part  remains  in  the 
roots.  This  portion  is  added  to  the  soil  when  the  roots 
decay,  and  becomes  available  for  the  following  crop. 
Thus  it  is  that  clover  benefits  the  wheat  that  is  grown 
later  on  the  same  soil. 

OTHER  FORAGE  PLANTS 

Aside  from  the  two  great  groups  already  mentioned, 
there  are  few  plants  cultivated  for  forage.  The  most 
important  are  those  of  the  mustard  family  of  which  the 
rape  and  turnip  are  examples.  Another  group  occa- 
sionally cultivated  are  the  salt  bushes. 

FORAGE  CROP  AREAS 

The  forage  crop  areas  of  the  United  States  are  classi- 
fied on  the  basis  of  temperature  and  rainfall.  All  forage 
plants  are  limited  to  rather  definite  conditions  of  heat 
and  moisture  and  a  knowledge  of  the  adaptability  of  the 
different  species  is  necessary  in  choosing  plants  for  differ- 
ent regions.  The  chief  areas  are  the  Cool  Humid 
Region,  the  Warm  Humid  Region,  the  Semiarid  Region, 
the  Arid  Region,  and  the  Region  of  Winter  Rains.  These 
areas  overlap  in  places  and  become  indefinite  in  others 
but  in  the  main  they  are  fairly  distinct. 

COOL  HUMID  REGION 

This  area  includes  the  northeastern  states,  extending 
south  to  the  southern  border  of  Virginia  and  Kentucky 


GENERAL  REMARKS  ON  FORAGE  GRASSES      13 

and  further  in  the  mountains,  and  west  to  eastern  Kansas 
and  eastern  Nebraska.  It  is  the  region  in  which  timothy 
can  be  successfully  grown  and  hence  is  usually  known  as 
the  Timothy  Region.  Other  humid  regions  occur  on  the 
Pacific  Slope  from  Puget  Sound  to  northern  California 
and  in  the  mountain  valleys  of  our  western  states.  In  the 
timothy  region  thrive  the  common  meadow  and  pasture 
grasses,  such  as  orchard  grass,  red  top  and  bluegrass,  and 
the  well-known  legumes,  red  and  white  clover. 

WARM  HUMID  REGION 

This  area  extends  from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  northward 
to  the  Cool  Humid  Region  and  west  to  eastern  Texas. 
As  the  Cool  Humid  Region  is  known  as  the  Timothy 
Region,  so  the  Warm  Humid  Region  is  known  as  the 
Bermuda  Grass  Region  and  corresponds  approximately 
with  the  Cotton  Belt.  Important  forage  plants  of  this 
area  are  Bermuda  grass  and  Japan  clover  for  pasture, 
and  the  cowpea  and  velvet  bean  for  hay  and  soiling. 
Johnson  grass  here  reaches  its  greatest  development. 

SEMIARID  REGION 

This  lies  west  of  the  two  regions  already  mentioned 
and  includes  all  those  portions  of  the  Great  Plains  where 
crops  can  be  grown  without  irrigation.  Small  areas, 
classed  as  semiarid,  are  scattered  throughout  the  western 
half  of  the  United  States.  They  may  lie  in  isolated 
valleys  or  in  spots  or  belts  at  the  base  of  mountains  be- 
tween the  humid  region  above  and  the  arid  region  below. 
In  the  moister  portions  of  the  semiarid  region  many  farm 
crops,  characteristic  of  the  humid  region,  can  be  grown, 


14  A  MANUAL   OF   FARM   GRASSES 

such  as  corn,  small  grains,  and  cotton.  This  is  especially 
true  of  certain  varieties  of  these  that  have  been  developed 
to  withstand  the  more  severe  conditions.  Within  recent 
years,  the  area  of  the  semiarid  region  has  been  extended 
at  the  expense  of  the  arid  region.  Land  which  was 
thought  to  be  too  dry  for  the  cultivation  of  crops  without 
irrigation,  is  now  used  for  that  purpose  without  other 
water  than  that  supplied  by  the  normal  rainfall.  To 
agriculture  under  these  conditions  has  been  applied  the 
term  dry  farming.  Dry  farming  has  been  made  possible 
chiefly  because  of  development  along  two  lines.  First, 
varieties  of  crops  have  been  produced  that  are  able  to 
withstand  a  greater  degree  of  drouth  than  those  previ- 
ously grown  in  the  humid  region,  or,  kinds  of  crops  have 
been  introduced  from  the  semiarid  regions  of  other 
countries.  Secondly,  methods  of  culture  have  been 
developed  by  which  the  soil  moisture  can  be  conserved 
and  utilized  to  a  greater  degree  than  heretofore. 

Among  farm  crops  especially  grown  in  the  semiarid 
region  may  be  mentioned  durum  or  macaroni  wheat,  and 
emmer.  Millet  is  a  favorite  forage  crop  in  the  eastern 
and  northern  portion  of  the  area.  Certain  kinds  of 
sorghum  are  commonly  grown,  especially  Kafir,  milo, 
Sudan  grass,  and  a  few  varieties  of  sorgo,  often  here 
called  "cane."  Brome  grass  is  a  standard  forage  grass 
from  Nebraska  to  Minnesota  and  Montana.  Orchard 
grass  and  meadow  fescue  can  be  utilized  further  west  than 
timothy  can  be  successfully  grown  but  are  of  no  great 
importance  in  the  region  as  a  whole.  The  standard 
leguminous  forage  crop  is  alfalfa.  Soy  beans  have 
attained  some  prominence  in  Kansas  and  adjacent 


GENERAL  REMARKS  ON  FORAGE  GRASSES      15 

regions.  In  the  southern  portion  of  the  Great  Plains, 
Johnson  grass  is  an  important  factor  in  much  of  the 
region  that  is  essentially  semiarid. 

ARID  REGION 

This  includes  all  that  portion  of  the  United  States 
that  is  too  dry  for  the  growing  of  crops  without  irrigation. 
From  the  agronomic  standpoint,  it  includes  the  arable 
land  of  this  region  to  which  irrigation  water  is  supplied. 
Under  irrigation,  practically  all  kinds  of  crops  can  be 
grown,  the  regional  distribution  being  limited  or  modi- 
fied by  temperature.  The  most  important  forage  crop 
of  the  irrigated  region  is  alfalfa.  Timothy  is  grown  in 
the  arid  region  of  Washington  and  some  other  forage 
crops  are  occasionally  cultivated  in  limited  quantities. 

REGION  OF  WINTER  RAINS 

This  region  lies  on  the  Pacific  Slope  including  the 
foothills  of  California  west  of  the  Sierras  and  extending 
north  to  Washington  and  Western  Idaho.  It  lies  east  of 
the  humid  region  already  mentioned,  which  extends  from 
northwestern  California  to  Puget  Sound,  and  includes 
the  Palouse  region  of  eastern  Washington.  As  the  rains 
come  in  the  winter  and  the  winter  temperature  is  com- 
paratively high,  this  season  is  utilized  for  the  growing  of 
crops,  though  the  summer  may  be  very  dry.  The  most 
important  crop  of  this  region  is  small  grain.  Large 
quantities  of  grain  are  grown  for  forage,  the  product  being 
called  grain  hay.  This  grain  hay  is,  except  alfalfa, 
almost  the  only  hay  on  the  market  of  much  of  this 
region. 


16  A  MANUAL  OF   FARM   GRASSES 

USES  OF  FORAGE   PLANTS 

According  to  the  manner  in  which  the  forage  is  used, 
forage  plants  may  be  divided  into  four  groups.  Pasture 
plants,  when  grazed;  Meadow  plants,  when  the  forage  is 
dried,  that  is,  converted  into  hay;  Soiling  plants,  when 
the  forage  is  cut  and  fed  green;  Silage  plants,  when  the 
forage  is  preserved  in  silos. 

PASTURES 

In  the  broadest  sense,  a  pasture  is  any  area  furnishing 
forage  by  grazing.  Such  are  both  the  open  range  of  our 
western  states  and  fields  of  grain  that  furnish  temporary 
grazing.  In  the  usual  sense  a  pasture  is  a  fenced  area  of 
grassland  intended  primarily  for  grazing.  As  the  present 
volume  is  concerned  chiefly  with  cultivated  forage  crops, 
the  subject  of  ranges  and  range  grasses  will  not  be  pur- 
sued further  here,  but  will  be  referred  to  briefly  in 
Chapter  X. 

Pasture  may  be  temporary  or  permanent.  Temporary 
pasture  can  again  be  subdivided  into  two  classes.  The 
first  class  includes  cases  where  the  grazing  is  incidental, 
the  crop  being  produced  primarily  for  another  purpose. 
Under  this  head  come  alfalfa  fields  grown  for  hay,  but 
grazed  at  certain  seasons;  or  winter  wheat  grown  for 
the  grain,  but  pastured  during  the  fall  or  winter. 
Meadows  are  sometimes  pastured  at  times,  where  such 
pasturage  does  not  materially  interfere  with  the  crop  of 
hay.  Temporary  pasture  of  this  sort  may  be  called 
incidental  pasture. 

The  second  and  most  important  kind  of  temporary 
pasture  is  that  produced  from  annual  plants  primarily 


GENERAL   REMARKS   ON   FORAGE   GRASSES    •          IJ 

sown  for  the  purpose.  The  grains,  corn,  sorghum,  Japan 
clover,  crimson  clover,  soy  (soja)  beans,  cowpeas,  velvet 
beans,  Canada  field  peas,  vetches,  rape,  turnips,  and 
some  other  annuals  are  used  for  temporary  or  annual 
pasture.  Perennial  grasses  are  also  used  for  pasture 
during  a  single  season,  but  detailed  discussion  will  be 
deferred  and  taken  up  under  the  permanent  pasture 
plants.  The  use  of  perennials  for  pasture  during  a  single 
season  depends  upon  the  balance  of  cost  of  production 
and  the  value  of  the  product.  Under  the  modern  system 
of  intensive  crop  production  in  connection  with  dairying 
and  other  forms  of  animal  industry,  it  may  be  an  ad- 
vantage to  grow  a  perennial  grass  like  timothy  for  the 
pasture  crop  of  the  first  year.  The  yield  may  be  larger 
the  first  year  than  in  succeeding  years.  The  larger  yield 
and  the  desirability  of  a  rotation  of  crops  may  determine 
the  use  of  perennials  for  temporary  pasture.  Italian  and 
English  ryegrasses,  being  quick-growing  species,  are  used 
for  winter  pasture  in  the  South. 

The  annual  plants  most  commonly  used  primarily  for 
pasture  are  rye  among  the  grasses,  and  rape  and  turnips 
among  the  cruciferous  plants  (mustard  family).  Japan 
clover  is  a  common  pasture  plant  in  the  south,  but  though 
an  annual,  is  usually  treated  as  a  perennial,  that  is,  it  is 
not  resown  each  year  but  reseeds  itself  spontaneously. 
The  cowpea  and  velvet  bean,  annual  legumes  much 
grown  in  the  Middle  and  Southern  States  for  green  feed, 
cover  crops,  and  hay,  are  to  an  increasing  extent,  also 
utilized  for  grazing. 

An  important  drawback  to  the  use  of  annual  plants  for 
pasture  is  the  large  percentage  of  waste  due  to  trampling. 


1 8  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

This  loss  may  be  greatly  reduced  by  allowing  the  stock 
to  graze  upon  a  limited  area  each  day.  The  fields  may 
be  of  such  a  size  in  relation  to  the  number  of  animals  that 
practically  the  entire  crop  will  be  grazed  off  in  a  few  days 
or  before  the  trampled  portion  is  killed  or  too  greatly 
injured.  Another  method  much  used,  especially  for  the 
smaller  animals,  hogs,  sheep  and  poultry,  is  the  confine- 
ment within  movable  pens  or  enclosures  that  are  shifted 
from  time  to  time  within  the  field. 

Under  the  system  of  farming  commonly  in  vogue  in  the 
United  States  during  the  past,  temporary  pasture  has 
been  an  incident.  It  has  been  for  the  purpose  of  utilizing 
a  field  that  for  the  moment  was  lying  idle,  or  it  has  been 
to  meet  an  exigency  such  as  the  unexpected  failure  of  the 
usual  pasture  crop,  or  to  tide  over  some  other  emergency. 
In  the  modern  system  of  agriculture,  annual  pasture 
plants  are  coming  to  have  a  definite  place  of  importance. 
The  yield  is  larger  than  that  of  perennial  plants  and 
annual  plants  are  better  adapted  to  systems  of  quick  rota- 
tion. On  the  other  hand  the  cost  of  production  is 
greater  for  a  series  of  years. 

PERMANENT  PASTURE 

The  term  pasture  as  commonly  used  refers  to  the  herb- 
age produced  by  perennial  plants  through  a  series  of 
years.  The  advantages  of  permanent  over  temporary 
pasture  has  been  mentioned  under  the  discussion  of  the 
latter.  Under  favorable  conditions  there  is  a  grazing 
crop  each  year  without  cost  other  than  the  original  prep- 
aration and  seeding,  and  small  additional  annual  cost  of 
up-keep,  such  as  the  repair  of  fences  and,  sometimes,  the 
mowing  of  weeds,  or  the  application,  of  fertiliser. 


GENERAL   REMARKS    ON    FORAGE    GRASSES  1 9 

The  great  pasture  grass  of  the  humid  region  is  Ken- 
tucky bluegrass  or  June  grass  as  it  is  called  in  the  more 
northern  states.  Under  conditions  favorable  for  its 
growth  no  other  grass  can  successfully  compete  with  this 
for  pasture.  In  general  it  thrives  throughout  the  humid 
region  in  fertile  soil  that  is  not  too  wet  or  that  is  not 
acid  (see  Bluegrass,  page  58).  Bluegrass  finds  the  most 
favorable  conditions  for  its  growth  on  the  limestone  soils 
of  the  Ohio  and  the  upper  Mississippi  Valleys,  especially 
in  the  famous  bluegrass  region  of  Kentucky.  By  means 
of  its  numerous  underground  creeping  stems,  it  forms  a 
firm  sod  which  tends  to  occupy  the  soil  completely  and 
thus  exclude  less  desirable  plants.  The  basal  foliage 
which  furnishes  most  of  the  forage,  is  proportionately 
abundant  compared  with  the  less  succulent  flowering 
stems.  It  starts  its  growth  early  in  the  spring  and  con- 
tinues until  late  in  the  fall.  The  seed  is  easy  to  gather, 
and,  if  properly  handled,  should  be  of  good  quality  and 
of  reasonable  price. 

In  the  irrigated  regions  of  the  West,  bluegrass  may 
become  a  troublesome  weed  in  alfalfa  fields.  Its  agres- 
sive  rootstocks  enable  it  to  supplant  alfalfa,  when,  from 
any  cause,  the  latter  becomes  weakened.  As  the  blue- 
grass  has  much  less  value  than  alfalfa  as  a  hay,  its 
presence  is  looked  upon  with  much  disfavor. 

Throughout  the  uplands  of  the  Southern  States — the 
warm  humid  region — the  most  important  pasture  grass 
is  Bermuda.  From  Virginia  to  Florida  and  west  to  east- 
ern Texas,  except  in  the  cooler  mountain  regions,  Ber- 
muda grass  surpasses  all  other  plants  for  pasture.  It  is 
nutritious  and  is  relished  by  stock,  and  it  withstands 

3 


20  A   MANUAL   OF   FRAM    GRASSES 

trampling  as  well  as  the  dry  hot  summers.  Although 
especially  adapted  to  the  drier  uplands,  Bermuda  thrives 
in  the  valley  lands  and  when  grown  here  tends  to  become 
rank  and  is  available  for  hay.  These  richer  lands  are, 
however,  generally  utilized  for  more  valuable  crops.  The 
northern  extension  of  this  grass  is  limited  by  the  cold 
winters. 

Bermuda  grass  is  preeminently  a  sun-loving  or  open 
ground  grass.  It  languishes  in  the  shade  and  is  easily 
choked  out  by  vigorous,  shade-producing  crops.  It  is 
this  character  that  gives  to  this  grass  its  value  for  the  dry 
open  uplands  of  the  Cotton  Belt.  In  the  rich  low  lands 
of  the  Gulf  Coast,  it  is  crowded  out  in  competition  with 
two  other  grasses,  carpet  grass  and  St.  Augustine  grass. 
These  grasses  thrive  especially  on  mucky  soil.  On  sandy 
soil,  even  in  the  low  lands,  Bermuda  usually  holds  its 
own. 

Another  plant,  a  legume,  is  adapted  to  the  pasture 
lands  under  the  same  conditions  that  are  favorable  to 
Bermuda.  This  is  Japan  clover,  a  low  annual,  intro- 
duced from  the  Orient  but  now  widely  distributed  in  the 
warmer  parts  of  America. 

Various  other  plants  are  used  to  a  limited  extent  in  the 
South  for  pasture.  Bluegrass  thrives  in  the  mountainous 
portions.  Alfalfa  is  grown  on  the  black  prairie  soils  of 
Alabama  and  eastern  Texas,  but  mostly  for  hay.  John- 
son grass  is  used  for  pasture  in  those  areas  where  it  has 
obtained  a  foothold,  but  is  not  so  well  adapted  for  this  as 
for  hay. 

Valuable  as  is  Bermuda  for  pasture,  it  becomes  a 
troublesome  weed  in  cultivated  fields.  There  it  grows 


GENERAL  REMARKS  ON  FORAGE  GRASSES      21 

much  coarser  and  is  known  as  wire  grass.  Because  of  its 
bad  habits  in  fields  of  cotton  and  corn,  Bermuda  has 
received  an  unsavory  reputation  and  its  real  value  as  a 
pasture  plant  is  not  always  recognized  or  conceded. 
Like  some  other  aggressive  grasses,  it  is  a  valuable  plant 
in  its  place. 

In  the  semiarid  region  there  are  no  characteristic 
pasture  plants  except  brome  grass,  which  is  adapted  only 
to  the  northern  portion .  M  uch  of  the  permanent  pasture 
of  the  Great  Plains  region  is  the  native  grassland. 
Much  grazing  is  also  obtained  from  alfalfa,  grain,  and 
sorghum.  In  the  southern  portion,  Johnson  grass  attains 
importance.  In  the  eastern  part  of  the  semiarid  belt 
where  the  conditions  are  not  too  severe,  orchard  grass  and 
meadow  fescue  are  utilized. 

In  the  northern  part  of  the  Great  Plains,  from  Ne- 
braska to  Minnesota  and  Montana  brome  grass  has  been 
grown  successfully.  It  is  the  only  cultivated  grass  that 
can  here  withstand  the  conditions  of  drouth  too  severe 
for  bluegrass,  timothy,  and  clover.  South  of  the  region 
mentioned,  the  summer  heat  is  too  great  for  brome 
grass. 

In  the  arid  regions,  the  pastures  are  irrigated.  The 
plants  used  under  irrigation  are  alfalfa,  especially  in  the 
more  southern  regions;  various  grasses  of  the  cool  humid 
region,  especially  bluegrass  and  timothy,  these  more 
particularly  to  the  northward ;  and  native  grasses.  Irri- 
gated native  pasture  is  likely  to  deteriorate  if  over- 
irrigated,  because  of  the  intrusion  of  weedy  species  such 
as  wire  grass  (a  species  of  rush)  and  foxtail  or  wild  barley 
grass. 


22  A  MANUAL  OF  FARM  GRASSES 

MEADOWS 

A  meadow,  from  the  agricultural  standpoint,  is  an 
area  producing  a  growth  of  forage  which  is  cut  for  hay. 
In  this  broad  sense  the  term  includes  wild  prairie  grass, 
fresh  or  salt  marsh  grass,  alfalfa  fields,  grain,  sorghum, 
cowpea,  or  any  other  plant  that  is  cut  for  hay.  In  the 
usual  and  more  restricted  sense,  a  meadow  is  an  area  of 
perennial  or  permanent  grassland  used  for  the  production 
of  hay. 

WILD  HAY 

Immense  quantities  of  hay  have  been  produced  from 
native  grassland.  Depending  upon  the  source  wild  hay 
may  be  divided  into  three  kinds  (see  page  146).  The 
first  and  most  important  is  prairie  hay,  derived  from  the 
native  grasses  of  uplands  as  distinguished  from  marshes. 
As  such  land  is  capable  of  being  tilled,  the  area  devoted 
to  hay  is  constantly  decreasing,  other  and  more  valuable 
crops  being  grown  instead.  Prairie  hay  from  the  eastern 
portion  of  the  Great  Plains  and  the  area  lying  just  east 
of  this,  is  nutritious  and  commands  a  good  price  in  the 
market.  It  consists  largely  of  bluestem  and  similar  tall 
prairie  grasses. 

The  second  kind  of  wild  hay  is  derived  from  fresh  water 
marshes.  Marsh  meadows  of  this  kind  are  scattered 
throughout  the  country.  They  attain  great  commercial 
importance  in  the  northern  part  of  the  Mississippi  Valley, 
notably  in  Wisconsin,  Minnesota,  and  the  Dakotas. 
These  marshes  are  too  wet  for  tillage  during  much  of  the 
season  but  become  sufficiently  dry  during  harvest  to 
allow  the  cutting  of  the  hay.  In  some  localities  broad 


GENERAL  REMARKS  ON  FORAGE  GRASSES      23 

shoes  are  placed  upon  the  horses'  feet  to  prevent  them 
from  sinking  into  the  soft  soil  during  the  mowing.  The 
most  important  grasses  of  these  marshes  are  a  kind  of 
bluejoint  (different  from  the  bluestem  of  the  prairies), 
and  reed  canary  grass. 

The  third  kind  of  wild  hay  is  derived  from  salt  marshes. 
Vast  areas  of  salt  marsh  are  found  along  the  seacoast  of 
the  United  States,  especially  that  of  the  North  Atlantic. 
The  hay  derived  from  salt  marsh  is  usually  of  poor 
quality  for  forage  but  is  utilized  extensively  for  packing 
and  stable  litter. 

GRAIN  HAY 

The  small  grains  are  well  adapted  to  the  production  of 
hay  and  are  used  for  this  purpose  whenever  the  value  of 
•the  hay  exceeds  the  value  of  the  grain  or  when  conditions 
justify  the  sacrifice  of  the  grain.  From  the  commercial 
standpoint,  grain  hay  attains  prime  importance  only  on 
the  Pacific  Coast  and  portions  of  the  area  lying  to  the 
eastward.  The  lack  of  other  sources  of  grass  hay  in  this 
region  has  led  to  the  utilization  of  grain.  Besides  the 
hay  that  is  produced  from  wheat,  barley,  and  oats,  a  not 
inconsiderable  amount  is  derived  from  volunteer  crops  of 
wild  oats. 

LEGUME  HAY 

Although  this  volume  is  concerned  primarily  with  the 
grasses,  a  few  words  will  not  be  out  of  place  regarding 
hay  derived  from  leguminous  plants.  The  most  im- 
portant hay  plant  of  the  west  is  alfalfa.  And  its  im- 
portance is  on  the  increase  in  the  eastern  United  States. 
Next  in  importance  of  the  legumes  in  the  hay  market  is 


24  A  MANUAL  OF   FARM   GRASSES 

red  clover.  This  plant  is  grown  throughout  the  cool 
humid  region  and  furnishes  much  more  hay  than  the 
proportion  on  the  market  would  indicate.  A  large  part 
of  that  produced  is  consumed  on  the  farm.  Although  it 
appears  on  the  hay  market,  it  is  in  less  demand  than 
timothy.  This  is  because  it  is  not  considered  so  well 
adapted  to  horses  as  is  timothy.  A  large  amount  of 
clover  is  grown  mixed  with  timothy,  this  mixture  also 
being  used  chiefly  on  the  farm.  Alsike  clover  is  grown 
in  many  localities,  but  much  less  in  quantity  than  red 
clover,  and  chiefly  in  places  too  moist  for  the  latter. 

In  eastern  Canada  and  in  the  adjoining  portion  of  the 
United  States,  hay  is  obtained  from  field  peas.  The 
most  important  leguminous  hay  in  the  South  is  the  cow- 
pea.  Other  leguminous  plants  used  for  hay  are  the  velvet 
bean  in  the  South,  crimson  clover  from  New  Jersey  to 
North  Carolina,  the  soy  bean  in  the  Southern  and  Middle 
States,  and  the  vetches  in  the  cool  humid  region  and  as  a 
winter  plant  in  the  South. 

COARSE  HAY  OR  FODDER 

In  the  wide  sense  the  dried  product  of  the  large  grasses 
is  hay,  but  it  is  commonly  referred  to  as  fodder.  The 
best  known  fodder  comes  from  corn  or  maize.  When 
corn  is  grown  for  the  grain,  the  fodder  is  utilized  so  far 
as  it  can  be  without  interfering  with  the  production  of 
grain.  Over  much  of  the  Corn  Belt,  the  ears  of  corn  are 
gathered  from  the  standing  plants  and  the  stalks  are 
allowed  to  remain  in  the  field  over  winter.  These  stalks 
are  usually  utilized  by  turning  stock  into  the  field  after 
the  ears  are  removed.  The  matured  and  weathered 


GENERAL   REMARKS   ON   FORAGE   GRASSES  25 

fodder  has  little  feeding  value,  but  nubbins  and  waste 
ears  are  saved. 

Another  method  of  harvesting  corn  is  to  cut  the  stalks 
before  the  ears  are  mature  and  while  the  foliage  is  green. 
The  stalks  are  placed  in  bunches  or  shocks  to  dry  in  the 
field.  The  grain  matures  while  the  fodder  is  curing,  and 
the  ears  are  husked  from  the  shock  by  hand  or  by 
machinery.  The  fodder  produced  in  this  way  contains 
much  nutriment,  its  value  depending  on  the  stage  at 
which  the  stalks  were  cut  and  upon  the  amount  of 
weathering. 

A  large  amount  of  fodder  is  produced  from  sorgo, 
Kafir,  milo  and  other  kinds  of  sorghum.  In  the  Great 
Plains  region,  sorgo  is  often  called  cane.  Sorgo  is  fre- 
quently grown  for  fodder  alone,  in  which  case  it  is  usually 
sown  thickly  so  that  the  individual  stalks  are  slender  and 
succulent.  Corn  may  be  grown  in  this  manner  also, 
that  is  for  fodder  and  not  for  the  grain.  Kafir  corn  may 
be  grown  for  the  grain  but,  like  corn,  the  stalks  and 
foliage  can  be  utilized  for  fodder  after  the  seed  has  been 
removed. 

Other  grasses  used  in  small  quantities  for  fodder  are 
teosinte  and  pearl  millet.  The  foliage  of  sugar  cane  is 
used  in  the  area  where  this  plant  is  grown. 

MILLET 

This  is  the  only  annual  species  among  the  smaller 
grasses  that  is  grown  to  any  considerable  extent  pri- 
marily for  hay.  The  area  where  it  is  used  extensively 
extends  from  Texas  to  Minnesota.  Included  under  the 
general  head  of  millet  or  foxtail  millet,  are  common 


26  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

millet,  Hungarian  grass,  and  Golden  Wonder  millet. 
Another  kind  of  millet  called  proso  is  grown  to  a  limited 
extent  especially  northward.  This  is  called  also  broom- 
corn  or  hog  millet.  Sudan  grass  has  assumed  prominence 
in  recent  years. 

ORDINARY  MEADOW  HAY 

Under  this  term  is  included  the  hay  made  from  the 
cultivated  perennial  meadow  grasses.  The  most  im- 
portant and  best  known  meadow  grass  of  the  cool  humid 
region  is  timothy.  This  is  the  standard  hay  of  the 
market  and  is  a  basis  of  comparison  for  all  others.  Red- 
top  is  produced  in  considerable  quantities  in  the  acid  or 
moist  soil  of  the  same  region,  especially  along  the  At- 
lantic coast  from  New  England  to  Maryland.  In  the 
Southern  States  especially  in  Texas,  Johnson  grass  is  ex- 
tensively utilized.  Brome  grass  is  used  in  the  region 
from  Nebraska  to  Montana  and  Minnesota.  Orchard 
grass  and  meadow  fescue  are  of  some  importance  in  the 
cool  humid  region.  Rye  grass  is  sometimes  grown  for 
hay,  especially  in  the  South  as  a  winter  crop. 

SOILING 

The  process  of  cutting  forage  and  feeding  green  is 
known  as  soiling.  This  method  of  utilizing  forage  is  only 
practicable  in  connection  with  intensive  farming,  such  as 
dairying.  The  labor  is  greater  and  the  waste  less  than 
in  pasturing.  Annual  plants  such  as  the  grains,  and 
some  coarse  fodder  grasses  such  as  corn,  sorghum,  and 
teosinte  are  the  usual  soiling  plants.  In  the  tropics  hay 
is  seldom  produced  as  the  conditions  permit  the  growing 


GENERAL  REMARKS  ON  FORAGE  GRASSES      27 

of  forage  throughout  the  year.  Here  soiling  is  the  usual 
method  of  feeding  animals.  The  grasses  most  commonly 
cultivated  for  this  purpose  are  Guinea  grass  and  Para 
grass. 

SILAGE 

The  advantage  of  feeding  green  forage  by  soiling  is  so 
evident  that  agriculturists  desire  to  continue,  if  possible, 
the  feeding  of  succulent  forage  throughout  the  year. 
This  is  now  made  possible  by  means  of  silos.  The  green 
feed  is  preserved  or  canned  and  fed  as  wanted  during  the 
year.  A  silo  is  a  large  tank  or  room,  in  which  green 
forage  is  placed,  the  air  being  excluded  so  far  as  prac- 
ticable. The  forage  starts  to  ferment  but  this  process 
ceases  as  soon  as  the  entangled  air  is  used  up.  The 
material  remains  in  the  slightly  fermented  condition  until 
removed  for  feeding.  If  the  silo  is  poorly  constructed 
and  air  gains  entrance,  the  fermentation  continues  and 
the  whole  mass  may  become  rotten  and  useless.  Al- 
though any  forage  plant  may  be  preserved  in  a  silo  the 
plant  most  used  for  the  purpose  is  corn. 

NOMENCLATURE  OF   GRASSES 

The  common  names  of  grasses  are  those  by  which  they 
are  known  in  the  language  of  the  countries  in  which  they 
grow  spontaneously  or  in  which  they  are  cultivated. 
The  English  name  of  cultivated  grasses  varies  in  different 
countries.  What  is  known  in  the  United  States  as 
orchard  grass  is  called  in  England  cock's  foot.  Even  in 
the  United  States,  a  grass  may  be  known  by  more  than 
one  name  or  the  same  name  may  be  applied  to  more  than 


28  A  MANUAL  OF  FARM   GRASSES 

one  species.  Timothy  is  also  known  as  Herd's  grass  and 
the  name  Herd's  grass  is  also  applied  to  redtop.  In  order 
to  standardize  names,  that  they  may  be  understood  by 
botanists  in  all  countries,  Latin  names  have  been  applied 
to  plants.  Botanists  have  classified  plants  into  families, 
the  families  into  genera,  the  genera  into  species.  The 
grasses  form  a  distinct  family  among  plants.  For  con- 
venience, the  grasses  have  been  divided  into  smaller 
groups.  There  are  about  20,000  species  or  kinds  of 
grasses.  These  have  been  grouped  in  about  400  genera. 
Each  genus  includes  the  species  that  resemble  each 
other,  the  classification  being  based  on  the  structure  of 
the  flowers.  A  Latin  name  has  been  given  to  each  genus. 
To  the  bluegrasses,  including  Kentucky  bluegrass, 
Canada  bluegrass,  Texas  bluegrass,  and  many  wild 
species  all  over  the  world,  has  been  given  the  name  Poa; 
to  the  bent  grasses,  including  redtop,  Rhode  Island  bent, 
carpet  bent,  and  a  large  number  of  wild  grasses  that 
closely  resemble  these,  has  been  given  the  name  Agrostis. 
The  species  or  particular  kind  in  each  genus  has  received 
a  Latin  name.  Botanically,  each  kind  of  grass  is  known 
by  the  Latin  name  of  the  genus  and  species  to  which  it 
belongs.  Bluegrass  is  called  Poa  pratensis;  Canada 
bluegrass,  Poa  compressa;  Texas  bluegrass,  Poa  arach- 
nifera,  and  so  on.  The  first  part  of  the  Latin  designation 
is  called  the  generic  name;  the  second  part,  the  specific 
name.  In  this  book  is  given  the  Latin  or  botanical 
name  of  each  grass  described.  This  is  done  in  order 
that  botanists  in  this  country  and  in  other  countries  may 
know  with  certainty  the  kind  of  grass  described  or 
mentioned. 


GENERAL   REMARKS   ON    FORAGE    GRASSES  2 9 

It  is  customary  to  place  after  the  Latin  name  of  a 
plant  the  name  of  the  botanist  who  placed  the  spe- 
cies in  the  genus  to  which  it  is  assigned,  the  name,  for 
convenience,  being  abbreviated.  This  enables  botanists 
to  investigate  further,  if  they  wish,  the  botanical  history 
of  the  grass.  As  Linnaeus,  the  famous  Swedish  natur- 
alist, was  the  first  to  place  Kentucky  bluegrass  in  the 
genus  Poa,  the  species  is  written  Poa  pratensis  L.  A 
second  name  is  sometimes  placed  in  parentheses.  This 
indicates  that  the  species  had  previously  been  included 
in  another  genus  and  was  transferred  to  the  present 
genus  by  the  botanist  whose  name,  or  its  abbreviation, 
stands  after  the  parentheses.  The  botanical  name  of 
Bermuda  grass  is  Capriola  Dactylon  (L.)  Kuntze. 
Linnaeus  placed  the  species  in  the  genus  Panicum  and 
Kuntze  transferred  it  to  the  genus  Capriola. 


CHAPTER   IV 
CULTURE   OF   GRASSES 

THE  culture  of  grass  crops  is  governed  by  the  same 
general  principles  that  are  applicable  to  other  farm  crops. 

GENERAL   PRINCIPLES 

To  produce  the  best  results,  ordinary  meadow  grasses 
require  a  fertile,  well  drained  soil.  Of  course  there  are 
soils  upon  which,  because  they  are  sandy,  rocky,  alkaline, 
or  are  too  wet  or  too  dry,  average  crops  cannot  be  grown. 
Upon  such  soils  it  may  be  possible  to  grow  species  espe- 
cially adapted  to  them,  and  such  grasses  may  require 
special  methods  of  culture.  These  requirements  are 
mentioned  under  the  paragraphs  devoted  to  the  indi- 
vidual grasses.  The  methods  of  culture  are  similar  to 
those  used  in  the  growing  of  grain,  in  practically  all 
regions  where  grain  is  raised. 

PREPARATION   OF   THE  SOIL 

Meadow  grasses  have  small  seeds,  hence  require  a  soil 
that  has  been  put  in  fine  tilth  in  which  they  may  be 
lightly  and  evenly  sown  and  not  deeply  buried.  A 
coarse  lumpy  surface  causes  waste  of  seed,  for  much  of 
it  will  be  placed  in  such  unfavorable  environment  that 
either  it  will  fail  to  germinate  or  fail  to  live  and  grow 
after  germination.  The  depth  of  plowing  must  depend 
upon  circumstances.  Under  usual  conditions  the  drain- 
30 


CULTURE    OF   GRASSES  3! 

age  and  tilth  is  improved  by  deep  plowing  but  soil  which 
has  been  shallow-plowed  for  several  years  .may  be  injured 
by  suddenly  deepening  the  plowing  and  bringing  the 
sterile  subsoil  to  the  surface.  In  such  cases  it  may  be 
best  gradually  to  deepen  the  plowing,  bringing  to  the 
surface  only  a  small  quantity  each  year.  In  the  Great 
Plains  region  where  strong  dry  winds  prevail  in  the 
spring,  deep  plowing  may  be  a  distinct  injury  as  the  soil 
is  sometimes  blown  away  to  the  depth  of  the  plowing. 
Here  it  may  be  necessary  to  disk  or  to  drill  in  stubble 
without  plowing. 

SOWING  THE   SEED 

Grass  seed  is  sown  broadcast  or  with  a  drill  upon 
properly  prepared  soil.  In  general  it  takes  less  seed  per 
acre  when  a  drill  is  used.  Not  all  kinds  of  grass  seed 
can  be  sown  with  a  drill.  Sorts  with  fluffy  or  chaffy 
seeds  do  not  feed  regularly  through  the  machine,  though 
they  can  often  be  made  to  do  so  when  mixed  with  sand. 
Broadcasting  by  hand  is  the  primitive  way  to  sow  grass, 
grain,  and  small  seeds  generally,  and  an  expert  can 
scatter  them  with  surprising  evenness.  There  are  many 
devices,  such  as  the  wheelbarrow  seeder,  now  sold,  by 
which  the  seed  can  be  broadcasted  mechanically.  These 
machines  scatter  the  seed  more  evenly  than  can  usually 
be  done  by  hand,  especially  by  the  modern  farmer  who 
has  less  practice  in  this  kind  of  sowing  than  had  his 
grandfather. 

Seeds  that  are  large  enough  to  allow  of  being  planted  an 
inch  below  the  surface  are  now  usually  sown  with  a  grain 
drill.  This  machine  places  the  seed  at  a  uniform  depth 


32  A  MANUAL  OF   FARM   GRASSES 

and  distributes  the  seed  more  economically  than  does 
broadcasting. 

Grasses  are  not  usually  planted  in  rows  for  cultivation 
when  grown  primarily  for  forage,  though  the  larger  kinds 
often  are  when  grown  for  seed. 

CARE  OF   PASTURES 

Temporary  pastures  which  form  part  of  a  rotation  will 
be  considered  in  another  paragraph.  Here  a  few  words 
will  be  said  about  the  care  of  permanent  pastures.  On 
fully  developed  farms,  the  land  usually  devoted  to 
permanent  pastures  is  likely  to  be  that  land  which  can- 
not be  utilized  for  crops.  It  may  be  too  rough  or  rocky, 
or  land  partially  covered  with  timber,  or  land  lying  along 
streams  or  ravines.  In  the  humid  region  such  land  is 
naturally  or  artificially  seeded  to  bluegrass,  or  a  mixture 
of  various  grasses,  but  in  which  bluegrass  is  likely  to 
dominate  on  the  drier  portions.  There  are  a  few  general 
principles  which  apply  to  all  pasture  lands  to  keep  them 
from  deteriorating. 

In  the  first  place  care  should  be  taken  that  pastures  are 
not  overgrazed.  The  number  of  head  of  stock  which  a 
given  area  will  support  depends  upon  conditions  and 
must  be  determined  by  experiment.  The  stock  eat  the 
most  palatable  growth  first,  hence  weeds  and  undesirable 
plants  are  left  to  flourish  unrestrained.  Within  limits 
the  natural  growth  of  the  grass  will  keep  the  weeds  in 
subjection  but  if  the  pasture  is  over-grazed,  the  weeds 
soon  get  the  upper  hand.  If  coarse  weeds  become  promi- 
nent in  a  pasture  it  should  be  mowed  occasionally  so  as 
to  give  the  grass  a  better  chance  to  overcome  them.  It 


CULTURE   OF   GRASSES  33 

is  a  fallacy  to  suppose  that  close  grazing  will  keep  down 
weeds. 

Another  important  point  in  preventing  the  deteriora- 
tion of  pastures  is  to  keep  stock  off  when  growth  starts 
in  the  spring.  The  growth  of  grass  should  be  allowed  to 
reach  2  or  3  inches  before  cattle  are  turned  into  the 
pasture  unless  the  number  is  so  small  that  there  is  no 
danger  of  retarding  the  growth  of  the  grass.  If  the 
green  parts  are  kept  too  closely  grazed,  the  plants  do 
not  have  an  opportunity  to  generate  strength  for  the 
season  and  hence  tend  to  die  out.  It  is  true  that  if  the 
grass  gets  ahead  of  the  cattle  and  begins  to  head  out 
the  cattle  do  not  relish  it  so  much,  but  in  such  cases  the 
pasture  can  be  mowed  to  start  new  growth.  Drouth 
soon  reduces  the  carrying  capacity  of  a  pasture  and  much 
damage  may  result  if  it  is  full-grazed  during  such  a  period. 

Unless  a  pasture  is  fertilized  at  intervals,  its  carrying 
capacity  gradually  decreases.  Top-dressing  with  barn- 
yard manure  renews  the  fertility.  In  the  absence  of  a 
supply  of  manure,  artificial  fertilizer  may  be  used.  Small 
quantities  applied  often  give  better  results  in  the  aggre- 
gate than  larger  quantities  applied  infrequently.  Of 
artificial  fertilizers,  potash  and  phosphoric  acid  are  likely 
to  give  the  best  returns.  Low  or  wet  land  is  usually 
improved  by  the  application  of  lime.  It  is  best  not  to 
apply  lime  at  the  same  time  as  other  fertilizer  as  it  tends 
to  release  the  nitrogen. 

If  a  pasture  becomes  run  down,  rejuvenation  may  be 
helped  by  reseeding  with  a  mixture  of  bluegrass,  white 
clover,  redtop,  and  timothy.  Timothy  gives  the  quick- 
est returns  but  soon  runs  out. 


34  A  MANUAL  OF   FARM   GRASSES 

If  the  pasture  is  such  as  to  allow  of  plowing  it  can 
best  be  rejuvenated  by  plowing  and  reseeding  as  de- 
scribed under  temporary  pastures. 

CARE  OF   MEADOWS 

There  is  little  to  be  said  concerning  the  care  of  perma- 
nent meadows  beyond  calling  attention  to  the  fact  that 
by  continually  cutting  and  removing  the  hay  the 
fertility  of  the  soil  is  gradually  reduced.  Some  soils  are 
of  such  a  structure  that  the  deterioration  is  not  noticeable 
for  several  years.  The  loss  of  nitrogen  and  usually  of 
potash  or  phosphoric  acid  will  reduce  the  yield  per- 
ceptibly in  a  few  years.  Hence  it  is  necessary  to  fer- 
tilize meadows  in  the  same  way  as  mentioned  above  for 
pastures. 

Lowland  meadows  that  are  subject  to  overflow  may 
receive  fertilizing  material  by  the  deposit  of  silt.  The 
meadows  around  the  Bay  of  Fundy  in  Nova  Scotia  are 
regularly  fertilized  in  this  manner.  Dikes  are  built  to 
keep  out  the  sea  water  but  at  intervals  of  several  years 
the  meadows  are  flooded  at  high  tide,  when  a  thin  coating 
of  silt  or  ooze  is  deposited.  During  the  first  season  the 
rains  wash  out  the  excess  of  saline  matter  and  the 
meadows  are  rejuvenated. 

MAKING   HAY 

The  methods  of  making  hay  are  so  well  known  that 
the  process  in  general  will  not  be  described  in  detail. 
Machinery  for  making  hay  is  now  in  such  general  use 
that  hand  methods  will  be  passed  over.  The  grass  is  cut 
with  a  mowing  machine  and  allowed  to  cure,  after  which 


CULTURE   OF   GRASSES  35 

it  is  stored  in  stacks,  sheds,  or  hay  mows.  This  sounds 
very  simple,  and  under  favorable  conditions  the  process 
is  as  simple  as  it  sounds.  The  difficulties  arise  in  the 
process  of  curing  when  the  conditions  are  not  favorable. 
If  the  grass  is  wet  with  rain  when  partly  cured,  or  if  the 
atmosphere  is  so  humid  that  the  moisture  from  the  grass 
cannot  be  removed,  it  deteriorates  rapidly  in  quality  and 
may  mould  or  decay.  If  the  shower  or  wet  spell  is 
followed  by  favorable  weather,  the  hay  may  be  recovered 
without  much  loss.  If  it  had  been  raked  into  windrows 
or  put  into  bunches  or  cocks,  it  usually  becomes  necessary 
to  spread  the  hay  for  drying.  Tedders  which  pick  up 
and  scatter  the  hay  are  useful  in  handling  a  heavy  crop 
in  the  swath  or  scattering  it  when  put  in  the  windrow. 
A  small  amount  of  moisture  may  detract-from  the  appear- 
ance of  hay  without  injuring  its  nutritive  value.  But 
thorough  wetting,  especially  after  the  hay  is  partly 
cured,  causes  a  rapid  deterioration  in  the  feeding  value. 
If  hay  is  put  up  when  damp  or  before  being  thoroughly 
cured  it  may  ferment  or  mould.  Sometimes  the  heat 
produced  by  fermentation  is  sufficient  actually  to  burn 
or  carbonize  the  hay. 

In  wet  climates,  various  devices  are  used  to  aid  in 
curing  hay.  The  simplest  is  to  throw  the  partly  cured 
hay  into  cocks  at  the  approach  of  a  shower  and  cover 
with  some  kind  of  an  impervious  cover  such  as  canvas  or 
specially  prepared  paper  or  pasteboard  hay  caps.  On 
the  return  of  favorable  weather  the  cocks  are  opened  to 
dry.  In  some  cases  the  freshly  cut  grass  is  put  up  in 
drying  sheds.  These  consist  of  a  series  of  open  frame- 
work floors  upon  which  the  grass  is  placed  in  layers  thin 
4 


36  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

enough  to  dry  by  ordinary  air  circulation,  the  whole 
being  under  a  roof.  In  wet,  tropical  countries,  arti- 
ficial drying  machines  have  been  used.  The  grass  is 
dried  by  a  current  of  hot  air.  The  machines  are  effective 
but  costly. 

The  time  to  cut  grass  for  hay  depends  somewhat  on 
the  kind,  but  in  general  it  should  not  be  cut  much  before 
flowering  nor  as  late  as  the  ripening  of  the  seed.  The 
aim  should  be  to  obtain  maximum  weight  and  maximum 
nutritive  qualities.  The  weight  increases  up  to  the 
time  of  the  maturity  of  the  seed,  but  the  nutritive  quality 
decreases  after  flowering.  Usually  the  combination  is 
greatest  about  half  way  between  flowering  and  maturity. 
Hay  cut  when  in  flower,  however,  usually  has  higher 
nutritive  quality.  Furthermore,  while  the  nutriment  is 
in  the  leaves  as  it  is  in  the  earlier  condition  it  is  more 
available  to  stock  than  when  it  is  mostly  in  the  stems  as 
it  is  later,  because  the  stems  are  not  so  readily  eaten 
By  nutritive  quality  as  here  used  is  meant  palatability 
combined  with  digestibility.  The  value  of  hay  depends 
in  large  part  on  how  much  the  animal  is  willing  to  eat. 

GRASS   IN   ROTATION 

Most  of  what  has  been  said  above  in  regard  to  care 
refers  to  permanent  meadows  or  pastures.  In  consider- 
ing the  question  of  temporary  pastures  or  meadows, 
certain  aspects  appear  which  modify  greatly  the  method 
of  procedure.  In  permanent  pastures  the  element  of 
labor  beyond  the  first  year  is  insignificant.  Conse- 
quently a  lower  return  of  interest  on  the  investment  is 
permissible.  The  yield  of  permanent  fields  after  the 


CULTURE   OF    GRASSES  37 

first  2  or  3  years  decreases  considerably.  It  is  evident 
that  the  greatest  return  in  yield  is  obtained  when  the 
fields  are  reseeded  as  often  as  every  three  years.  It  is  for 
this  reason  that  grass  occupies  a  prominent  position  in 
nearly  all  systems  of  rotation.  A  meadow  gives  its 
greatest  yield  the  first  crop  year  and  a  fair  return  the 
second  crop  year.  Hence  in  a  rotation  a  field  can  be 
used  one  or  two  years  for  meadow,  followed  by  one  or 
two  years  of  pasture.  Where  the  land  value  and  cost 
of  labor  permit,  the  best  results  are  likely  to  be  given  by 
one  year  of  meadow  and  one  year  of  pasture.  This  of 
course  is  followed  by  a  cultivated  crop  of  some  kind  and, 
somewhere  in  the  series,  by  a  leguminous  crop.  In  such  a 
system  there  is  little  trouble  from  weeds  and,  because  of 
the  high  state  of  fertility  maintained,  the  yield  is  high. 
Since  rotation  of  crops  is  a  subject  which  has  to  do  with 
general  farm  practice  it  will  not  be  further  discussed  here. 

GRASS  SEED 

Success  in  the  growing  of  forage  crops  can  scarcely  be 
attained  unless  pure  viable  seed  is  used.  Timothy  seed 
is  now  grown  on  such  a  large  scale,  and  under  conditions 
so  favorable  for  the  production  of  the  first  grade  seed 
that  a  satisfactory  quality  may  be  obtained  of  this  im- 
portant forage  grass.  The  seed  of  many  other  kinds  is 
not  infrequently  low  in  viability  or  mixed  with  weed  seed 
or  with  chaff. 

By  viability  is  meant  ability  of  the  seed  to  germinate. 
The  seed  of  corn  or  wheat  as  ordinarily  used  by  the 
grower  has  a  viability  of  nearly  100  per  cent,  that  is, 
nearly  every  seed  will  grow  if  placed  under  the  proper 


38  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

conditions.  But  much  grass  seed  as  sold  on  the  market 
may  show  a  viability  of  very  much  less  than  100  per 
cent,  sometimes  not  over  50  per  cent,  while  in  poor 
grades  it  may  be  reduced  to  zero. 

If  seed  has  nothing  wrong  with  it  except  its  low  via- 
bility, no  great  harm  may  ensue.  There  is  the  loss  due 
to  paying  more  for  the  seed  than  it  is  worth  and  the  dis- 
appointment arising  from  a  poor  stand.  Much  more 
serious  is  the  adulteration  with  poor  and  cheap  varieties 
or  the  presence  of  weed  seeds.  Not  only  is  there  less 
good  seed  but  there  is  the  danger  of  establishing  perni- 
cious weeds  difficult  to  eradicate. 

The  quality  of  the  seed  may  be  reduced  by  the  presence 
of  foreign  seed  (seed  other  than  the  kind  purchased) 
some  of  which  may  be  pestiferous,  or  by  presence  of 
inert  matter  such  as  dirt,  chaff,  or  old  seed.  It  is  evi- 
dently to  the  advantage  of  the  grower  if  he  be  able  to 
test  his  seed  and  determine  for  himself  if  it  be  of  good 
quality  both  as  to  germinating  power  (viability)  and 
purity — that  is  freedom  from  weed  seeds  and  chaff. 
The  farmer  can  always  obtain  information  as  to  the 
quality  of  his  seed  by  sending  a  sample  of  it  to  the 
director  of  his  State  Experiment  Station  or  to  the  Seed 
Laboratory  of  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture. 

The  farmer  can  determine  for  himself  the  viability  of 
his  seed.  He  can  also  determine  the  purity,  though  it 
requires  expert  knowledge  to  identify  the  particular  kind 
of  foreign  seed  that  may  be  present. 

To  determine  the  purity  it  is  only  necessary  to  examine 
a  sample  with  care.  Spread  it  out  on  a  piece  of  white 
paper  and  separate  all  dirt,  chaff,  or  withered  seed  and 


CULTURE    OF   GRASSES 


39 


estimate  the  proportion  of  good  seed.  A  small  magni- 
fying glass  is  a  help  in  this  work  as  many  of  the  grass 
seeds  are  small  (fig.  i).  If  one  wishes  to  know  accurately 
the  proportion  of  good 
seed  it  is  necessary  to 
weigh  the  sample  and 
afterwards  to  weigh  the 
good  seed.  As  farmers 
usually  do  not  possess 
balances  for  weighing 
such  small  amounts  and 
as  these  instruments  are 
expensive,  it  is  best  to 
send  samples  to  an  ex- 
periment station.  How- 
ever, a  very  fair  estimate 
can  be  made  without 
accurate  weighing. 

The  seed  of  grasses  is  enclosed  in  chaff  which  is  not 
usually  removed  in  threshing.  Timothy  seed  is  fairly 
free  from  chaff  but  seed  of  bluegrass  and  most  other 
grasses  has  a  rather  large  proportion  of  chaff.  The 
value  of  seed  depends,  of  course,  on  the  amount  of  good 
seed  as  distinguished  from  the  chaff.  The  weed  seeds 
can  be  easily  separated,  and  if  there  is  more  than  a  very 
small  amount,  the  grass  seed  should  not  be  used  for 
sowing.  In  examining  the  seed  of  bluegrass,  redtop, 
etc.,  one  should  pick  out  the  actual  seed  with  a  needle 
or  other  small  sharp  instrument,  so  that  he  may  know 
just  what  he  is  looking  for.  A  good  seed  is  hard  to  the 
touch  like  a  grain  of  wheat  (on  a  small  scale)  or  a  timothy 


I .  Magnifying  glass  suitable  for 
testing  the  purity  of  seeds. 


A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


2.  Seeds  of  some  common  grasses  as  they  appear  in  commercial 
samples,  a,  timothy  enclosed  in  chaff,  b,  timothy  free  from  chaff. 
c,  bluegrass,  a  single  floret  from  a  several-flowered  spikelet,  the  seed 
being  enclosed  in  the  chaff  (lemma  and  palea)  the  joint  of  ths 
rachilla  showing  on  the  concave  side,  d,  redtop,  a  seed  enclosed  in 
its  chaff  (lemma  and  palea).  e,  redtop,  the  naked  seed.  /,  redtop, 
the  outer  chaff  or  glumes.  Well-cleaned  seed  should  consist  mostly 
of  seed  like  d  and  e  and  should  be  nearly  free  from  the  coarse  chaff 
like/,  g,  orchard  grass,  h,  meadow  fescue,  i,  English  or  perennial 
rye  grass,  j,  brome  grass.  In  figurers  g  to  j  the  spikelet  has  been 
broken  up  in  threshing  so  that  there  is  presented  a  single  floret  with  a 
joint  of  the  rachilla. 


CULTURE   OF   GRASSES  4! 

seed.  Chaff  with  no  seed  inside  is  soft  and  collapses 
when  pressed  with  a  needle.  Some  of  the  common  grass 
seeds  are  shown  in  figure  2. 

Seed  not  infrequently  is  adulterated  with  various 
things,  especially  with  old  seed.  The  mixture  looks  all 
right  but  will  not  grow  well. 

It  is  to  be  recommended  that  every  grower  also  test 
the  germinating  power  (viability)  of  the  seed  he  is  going 
to  use.  This  is  a  simple  process  and  well  repays  the 
small  amount  of  trouble  required.  He  can  then  know 
what  results  he  may  expect  and  whether  in  purchasing 
his  seed  he  has  obtained  the  worth  of  his  money. 

To  test  germination  it  is  only  necessary  to  place  the 
seed  under  favorable  conditions  as  to  temperature  and 
moisture.  Most  progressive  farmers  now  are  in  the 
habit  of  testing  seed  corn  for  viability  and  hence  will 
readily  understand  how  to  handle  grass  seed  for  the 
same  purpose. 

The  seed  may  be  spread  upon  moist  sand  or  upon  wet 
cloth  or  blotting  paper,  and  should  be  kept  for  several 
days  at  a  fairly  uniform  temperature,  about  that  of  living 
room.  Soup  plates  make  convenient  germinators.  A 
plate  is  partly  filled  with  clean  sand  and  the  sand  satur- 
ated with  water.  Upon  the  sand  is  placed  a  sheet  of 
blotting  paper  or  a  piece  of  Canton  flannel.  The  seed 
to  be  tested  is  placed  upon  the  paper  or  cloth  and  covered 
with  a  second  layer  of  paper  or  cloth.  There  should  be 
enough  water  to  saturate  the  sand  and  the  covers  but 
not  enough  to  show  an  excess  of  liquid  so  that  the  seeds 
lie  in  water.  A  second  soup  plate  is  inverted  over  the 
first  to  prevent  drying  out.  The  germinator  is  placed 


42  A  MANUAL  OF  FARM   GRASSES 

where  it  will  not  be  too  hot  in  the  day  time  nor  too  cold 
at  night.  It  is  best  to  maintain  a  temperature  of  60  to 
80  degrees  Fahrenheit.  The  sand  should  be  kept 
saturated  with  water.  Some  seeds  are  likely  to  germi- 
nate in  4  or  5  days  but  the  test  should  be  continued  for 
as  much  as  two  weeks.  The  seeds  are  removed  as  fast 
as  they  sprout  and  a  record  kept  of  the  number.  For 
accurate  results  the  seed  sample  should  be  weighed  and  a 
count  made  of  the  seeds  to  be  tested.  The  result  can 
then  be  expressed  in  percentage  of  germination.  How- 
ever, a  very  fair  estimate  can  be  made  by  a  small  sample 
of,  say,  a  spoonful  for  the  test.  The  seed  should  be 
well  mixed  before  the  sample  is  taken.  It  is  well  to 
try  more  than  one  sample  so  as  to  get  an  average. 

Timothy  seed  is  usually  nearly  100  per  cent  pure  and 
the  viability  is  high,  usually  98  per  cent  or  more.  Hence 
it  is  recommended  to  those  who  are  not  familiar  with 
home  testing  that  they  try  a  sample  of  timothy  along 
with  any  other  seed  to  be  tested.  This  acts  as  a  check 
on  results.  Bluegrass  is  usually  mixed  with  much  chaff, 
even  the  best  grade  containing  10  to  20  per  cent  of  chaff, 
and  the  viability  is  likely  to  be  65  to  80  per  cent.  But 
poor  grades  will  run  much  lower  in  both  purity  and 
viability.  The  seed  to  be  tested  should  be  examined  for 
purity  to  see  that  it  is  not  adulterated  with  some  other 
kind  of  seed.  And  in  counting  the  germinating  plants 
no  record  should  be  made  of  plants  other  than  the  kind 
tested.  A  reference  to  the  figures  of  the  common  kinds 
of  grass  seed  will  aid  in  determining  purity.  Orchard 
grass,  meadow  fescue,  and  redtop  should  show  a  viability 
of  95  per  cent;  brome  grass  of  as  much  as  90  per  cent. 


CULTURE    OF    GRASSES  43 

That  is  out  of  100  seed  tested  95  or  90  should  germinate 
in  about  2  weeks.  Of  course  the  actual  percentage  can 
not  be  determined  unless  a  definite  number  of  seeds  had 
been  counted  out.  But  as  said  before  a  rough  estimate 
of  the  quality  can  be  made,  without  counting. 

It  is  evident  that  the  price  to  be  paid  for  seed  depends 
on  the  purity  and  viability.  Of  the  ordinary  pasture  and 
meadow  grasses  timothy  is  the  only  one  that,  when 
purchased  of  reliable  dealers,  is  likely  to  show  nearly  100 
per  cent  purity  and  viability.  Others,  especially  Ken- 
tucky bluegrass,  show  great  variation.  Low  grade  seed 
is  dear  at  any  price  and  high  grade  seed  may  not  always 
be  above  suspicion.  Much  of  the  failure  to  obtain  good 
results  with  grasses  other  than  timothy  may  be  due  to 
using  a  poor  quality  of  seed.  It  should  be  borne  in  mind 
that  the  farmer  always  may  have  recourse  to  his  State 
Experiment  Station  or  to  the  Seed  Laboratory  of  the 
U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture.  A  full  account  of  seed 
testing  may  be  found  in  Farmers'  Bulletin  (U.  S.  Dept. 
Agriculture)  no.  428  entitled  Testing  Farm  Seeds  in  the 
Home  and  in  the  Rural  School,  by  F.  H.  Hillman.  This 
bulletin  may  be  obtained  on  application  to  Secretary  of 
Agriculture. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE   STRUCTURE   OF   GRASSES 

IN  order  to  understand  the  descriptions  of  the  grasses 
set  forth  in  the  following  pages,  it  will  be  necessary  to 
learn  something  of  the  more  important  parts  and  organs 
of  the  grass  plant. 

Grasses  are  distinguished  from  other  plants  by  the 
jointed  stem,  and  the  long  narrow  parallel-veined  leaves 
placed  in  two  opposite  rows  along  the  stem.  The  struc- 
ture of  the  flowers  is  characteristic  and  will  be  explained 
in  a  separate  paragraph.  Typical  grasses  are  exempli- 
fied by  timothy,  bluegrass,  and  wheat.  Other  members 
of  the  grass  family  are  certain  larger  plants  that  are  not 
always  associated  with  the  typical  forms  mentioned 
above.  Among  such  are  corn,  sorghum,  sugar  cane,  and 
bamboos.  Some  plants  belonging  to  other  families 
resemble  grasses  in  having  long  narrow  blades.  Among 
these  may  be  mentioned  sedges,  rushes,  and  certain  kinds 
of  lilies.  In  all  these  the  structure  of  the  flowers  is 
different.  But  aside  from  the  structure  of  the  flowers, 
the  sedges,  the  family  which  most  nearly  resembles 
grasses,  may  be  distinguished  by  the  arrangement  of  the 
leaves.  As  stated  above  the  leaves  of  grasses  are  ar- 
ranged along  the  round  or  somewhat  flattened  stem  in 
two  rows  and  are  said  to  be  2-ranked.  In  sedges  the 
leaves  are  arranged  in  three  ranks  and  the  stem  is  often 
3-sided  or  3-angled. 


THE   STRUCTURE   OF   GRASSES  45 

The  structure  of  grasses  will  be  explained  under  the 
following  heads:  root,  rootstock,  stem,  leaf,  flower. 

ROOTS  AND   ROOTSTOCKS 

The  underground  parts  of  grasses  are  popularly  known 
as  roots  but  are  of  two  kinds,  differing  in  structure  and 
function,  the  true  roots  serving  the  purpose  of  taking  up 
water  and  food  from  the  soil,  the  rootstocks  serving  for 
propagation. 

Root. — The  roots  of  grasses  always  consist  of  clusters 
of  slender  fibers  such  as  shown  by  wheat  or  oats  when 
pulled  from  the  soil. 

The  ends  of  the  rootlets  are  covered  with  fine  hairs 
(root-hairs)  giving  them  a  velvety  appearance.  By 
means  of  these  the  roots  are  able  to  absorb  water  from 
the  soil,  and,  dissolved  in  the  water,  the  mineral  sub- 
stances present  in  the  soil,  these  being  the  food  of 
the  plant.  Certain  underground  parts  that  are  of- 
ten confused  with  roots  are  described  in  the  following 
paragraph. 

Rootstock. — This  is  a  modified  stem  which  creeps 
underground.  It  bears  roots  and  small  modified  leaves 
or  scales,  and  sends  up  at  intervals  shoots  which  develop 
into  ordinary  stems  and  leaves.  The  function  of  root- 
stocks  is  to  propagate  or  spread  the  plant.  Rootstocks 
are  found  in  bluegrass,  Johnson  grass,  Bermuda  grass, 
and  others.  Grasses  with  rootstocks  are  always  peren- 
nial. The  part  above  ground  may  die  but  the  rootstocks 
remain  alive  over  winter  and  send  up  shoots  the  following 
spring.  Rootstocks  are  also  called  rhizomes. 


46  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

STEMS  AND  LEAVES 

The  vegetative  parts  of  grasses,  the  green  parts  above 
ground,  consist  of  stem  and  leaves. 

Stem. — The  stem  is  the  central  axis  of  the  plant  which 
bears  the  leaves  and  finally  the  flowers.  In  most  of  the 
common  crop  grasses  the  stems  are  simple  and  upright, 
that  is  they  are  not  branched  above  ground.  However, 
nearly  all  grasses  stool.  This  stooling  is  a  vigorous 
branching  at  the  base,  as  shown  typically  by  wheat. 
In  technical  descriptions  the  stem  is  called  the  culm. 

The  stem  is  usually  round  (cylindric)  but  is  sometimes 
somewhat  flattened,  distinctly  so  in  Canada  bluegrass. 
It  is  divided  into  sections  (jointed)  separated  by  nodes 
(joints),  the  slightly  swollen  places,  discerned  distinctly 
in  the  straw  of  wheat  and  other  grains.  Many  grass 
stems  are  hollow,  as  in  wheat,  but  may  be  solid  or  pithy 
as  in  corn,  sorghum,  and  Johnson  grass.  At  each  node 
is  borne  a  leaf.  In  many  grasses  the  nodes  are  close 
together  at  the  base  of  the  stem.  The  crowding  of  the 
nodes  produces  a  crowding  of  the  leaves,  the  latter  thus 
appearing  in  a  tuft  at  the  base.  This  is  true  of  nearly 
all  perennial  grasses  such  as  bluegrass  and  rye  grass. 
The  early  shoots  remain  short  with  crowded  leaves.  The 
stem  elongates  only  when  the  plant  is  ready  to  produce 
flowering  shoots. 

In  a  few  grasses,  such  as  Bermuda  grass,  the  plant 
produces  slender  stems  or  runners  which  creep  along  the 
surface  of  the  ground,  taking  root  at  the  joints  and 
sending  up  flower-stems.  Such  creeping  stems  are 
technically  known  as  stolons. 


THE    STRUCTURE    OF   GRASSES  47 

Leaf.— The  leaves  are  the  foliage  organs  of  the  plant. 
They  may  be  crowded  in  tufts  as  already  described  or 
may  be  scattered  along  the  stem.  In  our  common 
meadow  and  pasture  grasses  the  stems  remain  short  in 
the  early  part  of  the  season  and  the  foliage  is  thick  and 
tufted  close  to  the  ground.  Later  the  long  flower  stems 
are  produced.  After  the  ripening  of  the  seed  the  flower 
stems  wither  away  and  during  the  remainder  of  the  season 
the  grass  continues  in  the  tufted  condition. 

The  leaves  invariably  arise  from  a  node  or  joint  of  a 
stem,  one  leaf  to  each  node.  This  arrangement  is  dis- 
tinctly seen  in  larger  grasses  like  corn  or  sorghum.  A 
leaf  consists  of  two  parts,  the  sheath  and  the  blade.  The 
sheath  is  wrapped  around  the  stem,  usually  for  some 
distance  above  the  node.  It  is  usually  split  on  the  side 
opposite  the  blade,  one  side  of  the  sheath  overlapping  the 
other.  The  blade,  commonly  called  the  "leaf,"  is 
attached  at  the  upper  end  of  the  sheath;  it  is  usually 
narrow,  flat,  and  gradually  pointed.  A  strong  vein  or 
vascular  bundle  passes  along  the  center  from  base  to 
apex,  and  on  each  side  parallel  to  the  mid-vein,  are 
several  delicate  lateral  veins.  These  veins  are  also 
known  as  nerves.  They  consist  of  minute  tubes  for  the 
conduction  of  sap  from  the  stem  into  the  leaves.  By 
holding  a  thin  blade  up  to  a  strong  light,  numerous 
minute  cross  veins  may  be  seen.  At  the  base  of  the 
blade  where  it  joins  with  the  sheath  is  a  delicate  mem- 
brane running  up  around  the  stem  for  a  short  distance. 
This  is  called  the  ligule.  It  is  usually  less  than  one-half 
inch  long,  often  much  shorter,  sometimes  so  short  as  to 
be  detected  only  with  a  lens. 


48  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

FLOWERS  AND   SEED 

The  reproductive  parts  of  the  plant  consist  of  flowers, 
which  in  turn  produce  the  seed. 

Flower. — The  individual  flowers  of  grasses  are  ar- 
ranged in  spikelets,  which  are  usually  small  and  incon- 
spicuous, but  nearly  always  are  aggregated  in  clusters  or 
masses  technically  known  as  the  inflorescence.  The 
inflorescence  of  the  grains  and  most  of  our  common 
grasses  is  known  to  the  layman  as  the  flower  or  seed 
head.  And  when  the  inflorescence  appears  the  plant  is 
said  to  be  headed-out.  The  flower  cluster  or  head  may 
be  dense  as  in  timothy  and  wheat,  or  open  as  in  oats  and 
bluegrass. 

The  unit  of  the  inflorescence  or  head  is  the  spikelet. 
This  can  be  easily  observed  in  wheat  or  oats.  The  wheat 
head  consists  of  a  central  flattish  zig-zag  axis  with  a  row 
of  spikelets  on  each  side.  The  spikelets  are  fastened  at 
the  joints  of  the  axis,  alternating  with  each  other  on  the 
two  sides,  those  in  each  row  overlapping.  In  oats  the 
spikelets  are  hanging  from  slender  branchlets  of  the 
inflorescence.  In  timothy  the  spikelets  are  very  small 
and  flat,  and  are  crowded  in  a  dense  cylindric  mass  or 
head. 

The  spikelet  contains  the  individual  flowers.  The 
familiar  wheat  spikelet  will  illustrate  this.  The  flattened 
spikelet  consists  of  several  overlapping  scale-like  bracts 
(fig.  3).  These  bracts  are  in  two  rows  and  when  removed 
are  boat-shaped.  In  bearded  wheat  some  of  the  bracts 
extend  into  long  bristles  (the  beard) .  If  a  wheat  spikelet 
is  examined  at  the  time  the  wheat  is  in  flower,  it  will  be 
found  that  the  middle  bracts,  when  pulled  apart,  contain 


THE    STRUCTURE   OF   GRASSES 


49 


a  flower,  that  is,  a  pistil  and  three  stamens.     If  the  wheat 
heads  are  observed  in  the  early  morning,  about  sunrise, 
the  bracts  will  be  seen  to  be  open  or  spread  apart,  and 
the  two    feathery  tops   of 
the  pistil  and  the  three  slen- 
der stamens   will   be  hang- 
ing out.     The  stamens  will 
be   shedding  the  pollen  at 
this  time.     A  light  gust  of 
wind    or   a    touch    of    the 
hand  will  send  the   pollen 
flying  in  little  clouds. 

The  structure  of  the 
spikelet  is  as  follows:  on 
the  outside  or  bottom  is  a 
pair  of  empty  bracts,  that 
is,  when  pulled  apart  there 
will  be  no  flower  within. 
The  third  and  following 
bracts  except  one  or  two 
small  ones  at  the  top,  con- 
tain each  a  flower.  Later 
the  flower  is  succeeded  by 

a  seed  or  grain.  The  two  lower  bracts  which  contain 
no  flower  nor  grain,  are  technically  known  as  glumes. 
The  following  bracts,  those  that  contain  flowers  and 
later  the  grains,  are  called  lemmas.  Behind  each  grain 
is  found  another  little  bract.  This  is  called  the  palea. 
The  spikelet  of  wheat  is  said  to  be  several -flowered.  The 
spikelet  of  the  oat  :is  2-flowered  or  3-flowered.  In  these 
the  lemma  in  soipe  yarietieg  has  an  awn  or  bristle  on  the 


3.  Spikelet  of  wheat:  a,  por- 
tion of  axis  with  3  spikelets;  b, 
a  single  spikelet;  c,  a  floret. 


5O  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

back.  The  spikelets  of  redtop  and  of  timothy  are  very 
small  and  are  i -flowered,  consisting  of  a  pair  of  glumes 
and  a  lemma  and  palea. 

The  spikelets  of  wheat  and  oats  are  large  enough  to  be 
examined  easily  with  the  unaided  eye,  but  the  spikelets 
of  some  grasses,  such  as  redtop  and  timothy,  are  so  small 
(only  1/12  inch  long)  that  a  hand  lens  or  small  magni- 
fying glass  is  needed  to  make  out  their  structure  satis- 
factorily. 

The  botanical  classification  of  grasses  is  based  upon 
the  structure  of  the  spikelets,  and  a  botanical  description 
emphasizes  the  details  of  these,  but  in  the  present  work, 
which  is  agricultural  rather  than  botanical,  the  descrip- 
tions of  the  spikelets  are  brief  and  include  only  such 
details  as  can  be  seen  easily  without  dissection. 

Seed. — The  seed  is  always  developed  from  a  flower. 
In  grasses  a  single  seed  is  developed  from  each  flower, 
and  each  spikelet  may  produce  as  many  seeds  as  there 
are  perfect  flowers.  When  the  seeds  are  rather  large  they 
are  usually  known  as  grains.  This  term  is  applied  espe- 
cially to  corn  and  the  cultivated  grasses  known  as 
"small  grains,"  such  as  wheat  and  oats.  On  the  other 
hand  the  term  grain  is  not  applied  to  the  small  seeds  of 
redtop,  bluegrass,  and  timothy.  Botanically  the  so- 
called  seed  of  grasses  is  a  fruit.  The  "seed"  or  grain  of 
wheat  is  a  fruit  (ripened  ovary)  containing  a  single  seed 
which  is  grown  fast  to  the  walls  of  the  fruit  to  form  the 
grain.  When  a  grain  of  corn  is  soaked  in  water  the 
enclosing  fruit  can  be  peeled  off  as  a  separate  covering 
leaving  the  actual  seed.  For  practical  purposes  the 
seed  and  fruit  of  grasses  are  the  same  arid  in  this  work 


THE    STRUCTURE    OF   GRASSES  5! 

are  so  considered.  That  is,  in  the  description  of  the 
grasses,  what  is  really  the  fruit  is  referred  to  as  the  seed, 
or  in  case  of  the  large  fruits,  as  the  grain. 

In  corn,  wheat,  rye,  and  some  other  grasses  the  seed 
(fruit)  separates  from  the  chaff  of  the  spikelet  (the 
glumes  and  lemmas),  and,  when  threshed,  comes  into  the 
market  as  a  naked  grain  or  seed.  In  many  others  the 
seed  remains  permanently  enclosed  in  the  lemma  and 
palea.  To  this  group  belong  oats  and  barley.  A  grain 
of  oats  or  barley  is,  then,  a  covering  of  chaff,  the  lemma 
and  palea,  with  the  real  grain  or  seed  inside.  This  grain 
can  be  removed  by  cutting  away  the  enclosing  chaff. 

The  commercial  seed  of  bluegrass  and  redtop  consists 
of  the  broken  up  spikelets,  each  seed  being  enclosed  by 
the  lemma  and  palea.  In  these  and  many  other  meadow 
and  pasture  grasses  the  commercial  seed  is  an  uncertain 
mixture  of  chaff  and  viable  seed.  The  seed  is  so  light 
that  in  threshing  and  cleaning  it  is  not  separated  from 
the  chaff,  or  at  least  very  incompletely  so.  Furthermore 
many  of  these  grasses  do  not  ripen  all  the  seed  of  the 
head  at  the  same  time,  nor  do  all  of  the  heads  ripen,  even 
approximately,  at  the  same  time.  Therefore  when  a  field 
is  harvested,  there  is  a  comparatively  small  percentage  of 
ripe  seed  in  the  harvested  heads.  When  these  heads 
are  threshed,  the  resulting  seed,  as  it  is  offered  for  sale, 
consists  of  a  rather  small  amount  of  ripe  viable  seed 
mixed  with  a  varying  amount  of  chaff.  Timothy  is  one 
of  the  few  meadow  grasses  in  which  the  seed  is  little 
diluted  by  chaff.  The  heads  ripen  about  the  same  time 
and  the  ripe  seed  can  be  rather  easily  separated  from  the 
chaff.  In  sowing  timothy  one  has  a  fairly  accurate 
5 


52  A  MANUAL  OF   FARM    GRASSES 

knowledge  of  the  condition  of  the  seed  and  can  calculate 
the  amount  to  sow  per  acre.  With  other  grasses  such 
as  bluegrass  and  redtop,  only  a  careful  examination  with 
a  magnifying  glass  will  reveal  the  proportion  of  viable 
seed  and  then  only  approximately  and  often  uncertainly. 
A  closer  approximation  can  be  made  by  germination 
tests.  The  latter  is  really  the  only  practicable  method  to 
determine  the  value  of  commercial  seed  of  most  of  our 
meadow  and  pasture  grasses  (see  Chapter  IV).  It  is 
evident  from  this  that  the  farmer  who  is  not  in  position 
to  determine  for  himself  the  value  of  his  seed  must  depend 
upon  the  reliability  of  his  seedsman.  The  selling  price 
of  seed  should  be  an  indication  of  its  purity.  It  is 
advisable  to  purchase  the  best  grade  at  a  higher  price. 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE   THREE   LEADING   FORAGE   GRASSES 

AMONG  all  the  grasses  that  are  cultivated  in  the 
United  States  for  forage,  three  stand  out  preeminently. 
These  are  timothy,  bluegrass,  and  Bermuda  grass. 

TIMOTHY 

Timothy  is  the  most  important  meadow  grass  in 
America  and  timothy  hay  is  the  standard  hay  upon  the 
market,  the  criterion  by  which  all  other  hay  is  measured. 
It  was  one  of  the  earliest  grasses  to  be  cultivated  in  this 
country  for  hay  and  at  once  became  dominant.  While 
timothy  is  no  more  nutritious  than  many  other  grasses 
it  has  other  qualities  that  cause  it  to  be  favored  above  all 
other  meadow  grasses  in  the  regions  where  it  thrives. 
The  seed  is  cheap  and  reliable,  and  of  a  nature  that 
renders  it  easy  to  handle  and  to  sow.  It  is  borne  in  a 
compact  head ;  the  heads  are  formed  at  a  fairly  uniform 
height  from  the  ground;  the  seed  ripens  approximately 
at  the  same  time,  does  not  shatter  much,  and  is  produced 
in  abundance.  All  these  qualities  tend  to  keep  the  price 
of  the  seed  low.  Good  seed  at  low  price  would  in  itself 
place  any  grass  in  a  favorable  position  in  the  estimation 
of  growers.  To  these  advantages  should  be  added  those 
of  being  palatable,  nutritious,  easily  grown  and  harvested 
and  of  covering  the  ground  evenly  rather  than  in  tussocks 

53 


54  A  MANUAL  OF  FARM   GRASSES 

as  in  the  case  of  orchard  grass.  For  these  reasons 
timothy  occupies  a  dominating  position  in  the  agriculture 
of  the  humid  region,  a  position  from  which  it  is  not 
likely  to  be  displaced  by  any  other  grass  now  in  culti- 
vation. 

The  region  in  which  timothy  thrives  is  the  same  as  that 
favorable  to  bluegrass,  that  is,  the  humid  region.  In 
general  this  is  the  northeastern  states  and  south  to  the 
southern  boundary  of  Virginia  and  Kentucky,  and 
further  south  in  the  mountains,  and  west  to  about  the 
ninety-sixth  meridian;  and  in  the  western  mountains  in 
the  Puget  Sound  region.  Timothy  can  be  grown  up  to 
about  10,000  feet  in  the  mountains  of  Colorado  and  to  a 
correspondingly  lower  altitude  further  north.  It  can 
be  grown  under  irrigation  in  the  more  northerly  arid 
regions  but  does  not  thrive  in  the  southern  portion  of  the 
United  States  even  under  irrigation. 

The  importance  of  timothy  is  shown  by  the  statistics 
from  the  Census  Report  for  1909  (see  page  7).  The 
acreage  of  timothy  in  the  United  States  was  14,686,393 
of  timothy  and  clover  mixed,  19,542,382;  the  production 
in  tons,  timothy,  17,985,420,  timothy  and  clover, 
24,748,555;  the  value,  timothy,  $188,082,895,  timothy 
and  clover,  $257,280,330.  This  is  far  above  the  amount 
for  any  other  hay  crop.  The  corresponding  figures  for 
alfalfa,  the  greatest  of  the  leguminous  crops  are :  acreage, 
4,707,146;  production,  11,859,881;  value,  $93,103,998. 
The  states  leading  in  the  production  of  timothy  and 
of  timothy  and  clover  are  given  in  Table  IV  (page 
7). 


THE  THREE  LEADING  FORAGE  GRASSES       55 

TIMOTHY  AS  A  MEADOW  GRASS 

Timothy  is  a  short-lived  perennial  and  is  not  well 
adapted  to  permanent  meadow.  The  hay  crop  decreases 
markedly  after  the  first  two  or  three  years.  For  best 
results,  therefore,  a  meadow  should  be  kept  in  timothy 
for  only  two  or  three  years  and  then  plowed  up  and  used 
for  some  other  purpose.  Usually  the  plan  is  to  mow  for 
hay  the  first  two  years  and  continue  for  pasture  the  third 
year.  It  is  a  common  practice  over  much  of  the  humid 
region  to  grow  timothy  with  clover.  Hay  grown  for  the 
market  is  usually  made  from  timothy  grown  alone,  as 
pure  timothy  hay  is  demanded  in  most  markets  and 
brings  a  higher  price  than  mixed  hay,  and  for  horses  is 
more  suitable.  For  consumption  on  the  farm  timothy 
and  clover  is  desirable  as  it  is  more  nutritious,  though 
not  so  well  adapted  to  horses. 

Timothy  may  be  sown  in  fall  or  spring  according  to 
circumstances.  When  the  conditions  are  favorable, 
timothy  alone  or  -timothy  and  clover  mixed  should  be 
sown  in  the  fall,  that  is  in  late  August  or  early  September. 
The  plants  should  be  well  started  by  the  end  of  the 
growing  season  and  produce  a  full  crop  the  following 
year.  In  this  way  the  crop  is  produced  with  the  least 
loss  of  time.  If  the  seed  is  sown  in  the  spring,  a  crop  will 
be  produced  the  first  year  but  not  a  full  crop.  Further- 
more, weeds  interfere'  with  a  spring-sown  crop  much 
more  than  with  a  fall-sown  one.  Therefore,  there  is  a 
greater  return  from  the  land  if  a  summer  crop  is  grown 
which  can  be  removed  in  time  for  the  fall  sowing  of 
timothy.  It  is  a  common  practice  in  much  of  the  timo- 


56  A  MANUAL  OF  FARM   GRASSES 

thy  region  to  sow  grain  with  timothy  in  the  fall.  In  this 
way  a  grain  crop  is  produced  the  following  year  and  a  full 
crop  of  timothy  the  third  year.  Apparently  the  crop  of 
grain  is  a  clear  gain.  This  is  so  only  under  poor  methods 
of  culture.  If  the  land  is  in  good  condition,  and  the 
crops  are  treated  properly,  a  greater  return  is  received  by 
sowing  the  grain  alone,  then  after  the  crop  is  removed, 
preparing  the  land  for  timothy  to  be  sown  in  the  fall. 
The  increase  in  the  crop  of  grain  should  pay  for  the 
preparation  of  the  land  for  the  timothy.  If  the  grain  is 
sown  too  thickly  with  timothy,  the  latter  suffers  and  will 
not  produce  a  full  crop  the  following  year.  Some  growers 
sow  clover  in  the  spring  upon  the  timothy  sown  the  pre- 
ceding fall.  This  is  done  especially  "when  the  timothy 
has  been  sown  with  grain.. 

In  preparing  the  seed  bed  for  timothy,  it  must  be 
remembered  that  the  seed  is  very  small  and  should  be 
covered  lightly.  It  is  therefore  necessary  to  exercise  care 
that  the  soil  be  placed  in  fine  tilth.  The  harrowing 
should  be  such  as  to  cover  the  seed  not  deeper  than  about 
half  an  inch. 

On  land  not  perfectly  adapted  to  timothy,  a  little  red- 
top  may  be  added  as  a  filler.  This  will  increase  the 
yield.  Spots  that  are  too  wet  for  timothy  will  produce 
redtop.  This  is  not  advisable  if  the  timothy  is  grown  for 
sale  as  the  admixture  of  redtop  reduces  its  price.  Tim- 
othy should  be  sown  with  a  seeding  machine,  such  as  a 
wheelbarrow  seeder.  A  drill  places  the  seed  too  deep. 
If  sown  with  grain  a  grain  drill  can  be  used  with  a  special 
timothy  attachment.  The  amount  of  seed  sown  per 
acre  depends  upon  the  condition  of  the  soil.  It  also 


THE  THREE  LEADING  FORAGE  GRASSES 


57 


depends  upon  the  purity  of  the  seed,  but  fortunately  for 
the  grower,  timothy  seed  is  usually  of  a  fairly  high  grade 
of  purity  and  viability.  It  is  customary  to  use  12  to  18 
pounds  per  acre.  If  clover  is  used,  the  amount  of  seed 
is  about  8  pounds  per  acre.  Timothy 
seed  weighs  45  pounds  per  bushel. 

DESCRIPTION 

A  perennial  grass  usually  2  to  3  feet 
tall,  smooth,  from  a  somewhat  bulb- 
ous base,  growing  in  small  tufts. 
Leaves  flat,  in  the  larger  plants  as 
much  as  a  foot  long.  Panicle  or  head 
a  dense  cylindrical  spike  2  to  5  inches 
long.  Anthers  bluish. 

Details  of  the  Spikelet— Spikelet 
strongly  flattened,  I -flowered,  about 
3  mm.  long;  glumes  equal ,oblong,  long- 
ciliate  on  the  keel,  rounded  to  a  short 
awn  i  to  2  mm.*  long;  lemma  and 
palea  about  equal,  thin  and  pale, 
about  half  as  long  as  the  glumes. 
The  seed  of  commerce  is  the  caryopsis, 
mostly  enclosed  in  its  lemma  and 
palea.  ' 

Common  Names. — Timothy  is  the 
name  most  widely  used  for  this  grass,  this  name  coming 
from  that  of  Timothy  Hanson  who  is  said  to  have  in- 
troduced it  into  this  country.  In  some  localities  this 
species  is  known  as  Herd's  grass,  a  name  which  is  also 
used  for  redtop. 

*  A  millimeter  (mm.)  is  about  1/25  of  an  inch. 


4.  Timothy.  A 
single  head,  the 
lower  part  in  flower, 
the  stamens  pro- 
truding. 


58  A  MANUAL   OF    FARM    GRASSES 

Botanical  Name. — Phleum  pratense  L.  The  genus 
Phleum  includes  several  species  of  the  Old  World  that 
are  of  no  importance  agriculturally.  One  species,  moun- 
tain timothy  (P.  alpinum  L.),  is  found  in  mountain 
regions  of  both  Europe  and  North  America.  This  is  of 
some  importance  as  a  forage  grass  in  mountain  meadows. 
Phleum  is  an  ancient  Greek  name  for  a  kind  of  reed  but 
was  applied  by  Linnaeus  to  the  genus  of  grasses  de- 
scribed above.  The  specific  name  pratense  means  grow- 
ing in  meadows. 

BLUEGRASS 

Bluegrass  is  the  most  important  pasture  grass  in 
America.  It  does  not  thrive  throughout  the  United 
States,  however,  but  only  in  those  regions  which  furnish 
the  proper  conditions.  These  conditions  are  a  cool, 
moist  climate  and  a  fertile  soil  rich  in  lime.  The  area 
adapted  to  bluegrass  is,  in  general,  the  humid  region, 
that  is,  the  northeastern  states  south  to  Virginia  and 
west  to  eastern  Kansas,  extending  south  in  the  mountains 
to  northern  Alabama,  the  northern  Pacific  Coast  from 
Puget  Sound  to  California,  and  also  many  isolated  areas 
in  the  western  mountains.  The  limitations  mentioned 
above  are  determined  mainly  by  climatic  conditions. 
Bluegrass  requires  the  moisture  which  is  furnished  in  the 
humid  region  by  the  summer  rainfall.  Its  limits  of  cul- 
tivation can  be  extended  by  the  use  of  irrigation,  but 
even  with  artificial  water  supply,  it  will  not  thrive  in  the 
southern  states  and  in  the  arid  region.  Even  in  the 
humid  region,  it  may  suffer  from  drouth  in  summer.  In 
eastern  Kansas  and  other  localities  where  summer 
drouths  are  of  frequent  occurrence,  bluegrass  languishes 


THE  THREE  LEADING  FORAGE  GRASSES       59 

during  the  summer  months  but  revives  rapidly  during 
the  spring  and  fall. 

Within  the  climatic  area  adapted  to  its  growth,  blue- 
grass  may  fail  because  of  the  sterility  of  the  soil  or  be- 
cause of  the  lack  of  lime.  Sterility  of  the  soil  may  be 
corrected  by  the  use  of  fertilizers  or  by  thorough  culti- 
vation, but  often  these  methods  are  not  practicable. 
If  it  is  desirable  to  utilize  sterile  hills  for  pasture,  it  may 
be  advisable  to  use  other  grasses  than  bluegrass  for  this 
purpose. 

As  has  been  said,  soils  lacking  in  lime,  the  so-called 
acid  soils,  are  not  well  suited  to  bluegrass.  Such  soil  is 
found  especially  in  the  New  England  states  and  on  the 
Atlantic  Coastal  Plain.  Acid  soils  are  found  less  fre- 
quently in  the  Middle  States.  Recently-drained  swamp 
land  is  usually  unsuited  to  bluegrass  without  special 
treatment.  Acid  soils  may  be  rendered  suitable  by  the 
addition  of  lime  or  land  plaster  if  the  lack  of  lime  is  the 
only  unfavorable  condition.  In  the  lime-poor  region  of 
the  Atlantic  Coast  it  may  be  more  economical  to  use  some 
grass  like  red  top  that  thrives  on  such  soil,  than  it  would 
be  to  resort  to  liming. 

BLUEGRASS  FOR  PASTURE 

In  the  humid  region,  bluegrass  is  the  best  grass  for 
permanent  pasture.  It  does  not  fit  well,  however,  into  a 
rotation  where  only  one,  two,  or  even  three  years  are 
given  to  pasture.  For  one  or  two  crop  years,  larger 
returns  are  given  by  other  grasses  such  as  timothy  or 
orchard  grass.  In  regions  where  bluegrass  abounds  it 
comes  in  spontaneously  and  occupies  grassland  suited 


60  A  MANUAL  OF   FARM   GRASSES 

to  its  growth.  If  the  species  is  not  found  in  the  locality, 
it  will  be  necessary  to  sow  the  seed.  The  treatment  is 
the  same  as  that  for  other  pasture  and  meadow  grasses, 
the  seed  being  sown  on  well-prepared  land  in  spring  or 
early  autumn.  In  regions  subject  to  summer  drouths, 
bluegrass  makes  a  favorable  growth  in  spring  and  fall  but 
is  dormant  during  the  dry  season. 

BLUEGRASS  FOR  LAWNS 

Bluegrass  is  the  most  important  lawn  grass  over  the 
area  in  which  it  excels  as  a  pasture  grass.  Its  use  as  a 
lawn  grass,  however,  is  practicable  where  its  use  as  a 
pasture  grass  may  be  impracticable,  because  it  is  easier 
to  supply  favorable  conditions  on  small  areas.  The 
conditions  necessary  are  sufficient  moisture  and  a  soil 
fertile  and  rich  in  lime.  It  is  therefore  possible  to  grow 
bluegrass  for  lawns  far  outside  of  the  range  indicated  for 
pasture.  However  it  will  not  thrive  in  the  Southern 
States  nor  fn  arid  regions  of  the  southwest.  In  regions 
where  favorable  conditions  are  not  supplied  by  nature, 
it  is  always  worth  considering  whether  there  may  not  be 
some  other  grass  that  will  be  adapted  to  the  conditions 
as  found.  If  the  soil  is  lacking  in  lime,  it  may  be  better 
to  use  carpet  bent  than  to  lime  the  soil  for  bluegrass. 
In  the  south,  there  are  grasses,  such  as  Bermuda  grass 
and  carpet  grass  suited  to  the  conditions  found  there. 
The  conditions  necessary  for  the  growth  of  bluegrass  as 
indicated  above,  water,  fertility,  and  lime,  may  be  sup- 
plied when  lacking,  by  sprinkling,  by  the  use  of  fertilizers, 
and  by  liming. 


THE  THREE  LEADING  FORAGE  GRASSES  6 1 

MAKING  A  BLUEGRASS  LAWN 

A  lawn  may  be  made  by  transplanting  turf  or  by 
seeding.  In  either  case  the  preparation  of  the  soil  is 
the  same.  The  best  soil  is  a  rich,  well-drained  loam  such 
as  would  be  considered  good  soil  for  the  growing  of  corn, 
wheat  or  other  field  crops.  This  soil  should  be  prepared 
by  plowing  and  harrowing  to  put  it  in  fine  tilth.  The 
turf  should  be  cut  from  a  pure  stand  of  old  bluegrass  sod, 
transferred  to  the  prepared  soil  as  soon  as  possible  to 
prevent  the  drying  out  of  the  roots,  laid  closely  and 
evenly  and  tramped  or  rolled  firmly  in  place.  The  sod 
can  be  cut  in  squares  and  placed  in  piles  or  cut  in  strips 
and  rolled  up,  these  methods  tending  to  prevent  the 
exposure  of  the  roots  to  the  drying  influence  of  the  air. 
After  the  turf  is  placed,  the  lawn  should  be  thoroughly 
wet  down.  If  all  the  conditions  are  favorable,  this  is  the 
best  and  quickest  way  to  get  a  good  lawn.  In  practice 
it  is  not  often  that  all  these  conditions  are  fulfilled.  It  is 
difficult  to  obtain  a  pure  sod  of  bluegrass.  If  the  soil  is 
contaminated  by  weeds,  these  become  troublesome  and 
are  not  easily  removed.  If  the  sod  contains  few  weeds 
but  is  a  mixture  of  grasses,  the  resulting  lawn  will  lack 
uniformity  in  color  and  texture.  To  those  who  are  par- 
ticular in  regard  to  the  appearance  of  a  lawn,  these  are 
serious  objections.  Because  pure  or  unmixed  sod  of  blue- 
grass  is  usually  not  available,  turfing  cannot  be  relied 
upon  to  produce  the  best  lawn,  and  one  must  resort  to 
seeding. 

If  the  soil  is  not  fertile  it  must  be  put  in  proper  condi- 
tion by  the  addition  of  fertilizer.  Good  well-rotted  barn- 


62  A  MANUAL  OF  FARM   GRASSES 

yard  manure  free  from  weed  seed  is  the  best  fertilizer 
but  is  not  always  obtainable.  This  should  be  well  in- 
corporated with  the  soil.  In  the  absence  of  barnyard 
manure,  artificial  fertilizer  may  be  used.  Those  pre- 
paring a  lawn  are  not  likely  to  know  what  ingredients  are 
lacking  in  the  soil,  hence  it  is  best  to  use  a  complete 
fertilizer.  The  amount  necessary  depends  upon  the  con- 
dition of  the  soil.  Ordinarily  one  may  count  on  using 
300  to  400  pounds  per  acre  or  approximately  2  to  3 
pounds  per  square  rod.  If  the  soil  is  lacking  in  lime, 
this  ingredient  should  be  added  in  the  form  of  slaked 
lime,  land  plaster  or  gypsum  at  the  rate  of  5  to  10  pounds 
per  square  rod. 

Seeding  should  be  done  early  in  the  spring.  It  is  im- 
portant that  the  best  seed  be  used.  On  account  of  the 
method  of  harvesting,  the  viability  of  bluegrass  seed  is 
likely  to  be  rather  low  in  the  best  quality;  in  a  poor 
quality  the  seed  may  be  almost  worthless.  The  seed  is 
sown  at  the  rate  of  about  60  or  even  100  pounds  per 
acre  or  about  1/2  pound  per  square  rod.  It  is  a  favorite 
practice  in  some  localities  to  sow  the  seed  upon  the  late 
snow  and  allow  it  to  sink  into  the  soil  as  the  snow  melts. 
Some  authorities  recommend  sowing  the  seed  with  some 
grain  such  as  oats  or  rye.  The  grain  germinates  first 
and  acts  as  a  nurse  crop.  Later  the  grain  is  mowed  off. 
Usually,  however,  better  results  are  obtained  by  sowing 
the  grass  seed  alone. 

The  directions  above  given  apply  to  the  production  of 
a  bluegrass  lawn  of  uniform  texture  and  color.  If  uni- 
formity in  these  respects  is  not  required,  and  the  condi- 
tion of  fertility  and  tilth  have  not  been  "fully  met,  it  will 


THE  THREE  LEADING  FORAGE  GRASSES       63 

be  advisable  to  sow  a  mixture  of  grasses,  such  as  blue- 
grass,  perennial  and  Italian  rye  grass,  carpet  bent,  and 
some  of  the  small  fescue  grasses.  The  result  will  lack 
in  uniformity  but  there  may  be  a  gain  in  vigor  and 
continuity  of  soil  cover. 

In  either  turfing  or  seeding,  the  lawn  should  be  watered 
if  the  rainfall  is  not  sufficient  in  amount  or  frequency. 
It  is  best  to  wet  the  soil  thoroughly  at  intervals  of  a  few 
days,  rather  than  to  sprinkle  lightly  every  day.  Water- 
ing is  most  efficient  after  the  heat  of  the  day  has  past, 
as  the  application  of  water  during  the  middle  of  the  day 
may  result  in  scalding  the  foliage. 

The  practice  of  attempting  to  establish  a  lawn  upon 
soil  left  from  the  excavation  of  a  cellar  or  upon  the  refuse 
left  from  building  operations  cannot  be  too  strongly 
condemned.  If  the  lawn  is  started  by  seeding  on  such  a 
foundation  the  result  is  likely  to  be  a  vigorous  crop  of 
weeds.  If  turfing  is  resorted  to,  the  grass  will  decline  as 
soon  as  the  nourishment  in  the  sod  is  exhausted.  Sod 
used  by  builders  and  contracters  is  often  obtained  from  a 
nearby  vacant  lot  and  contains  in  most  cases  many 
pestiferous  weeds.  Under  such  conditions  no  amount  of 
faithful  watering  can  correct  the  original  evil.  If  there 
is  a  poor  stand,  it  is  best  to  plow  up  the  ground  and  begin 
again.  If  the  stand  is  good,  the  condition  of  the  lawn 
can  be  maintained  or  even  gradually  improved  by  mow- 
ing, rolling  and  watering  when  water  is  needed. 

If  a  lawn  is  to  be  established  on  land  about  a  dwelling 
and  such  land  is  covered  by  the  clay  from  the  excavation 
and  by  refuse  from  the  building  operations,  it  will  be 
necessary  to  remove  a  portion  of  this  sterile  soil  and  fill 


64  A  MANUAL  OF  FARM   GRASSES 

in  with  good  soil  to  the  depth  of  one  foot  or,  still  better, 
two  feet.  This  is  necessary  for  good  results  whether 
the  lawn  is  to  be  made  by  turfing  or  by  sowing  seed. 
If  turfing  is  the  method  employed  and  the  supply  of  good 
turf  is  limited,  good  results  may  be  obtained  by  cutting 
the  turf  into  small  pieces  and  planting  in  the  prepared 
soil  at  intervals  of  several  inches.  The  pieces  should  be 
pressed  firmly  into  the  soil.  Under  favorable  conditions, 
the  grass  will  spread  and  cover  the  surface  in  a  few  weeks. 
Turfing  with  a  continuous  cover  may  be  done  at  any 
time  during  the  growing  season.  Turfing  with  cut 
pieces  should  be  done  not  later  than  early  fall  in  order 
to  allow  sufficient  time  before  winter,  to  fill  in  the  space 
between  the  pieces.  Seeding  should  be  done  early  in  the 
spring  or  early  in  the  fall.  The  latter  is  recommended 
for  Maryland  and  vicinity. 

To  produce  a  soft,  even,  elastic  surface,  a  lawn  should 
be  frequently  mowed.  Rolling  is  also  a  great  aid  in  this 
respect.  If  the  mowing  has  been  neglected  and  a  tall 
growth  of  grass  has  resulted,  this  should  not  be  cut  very 
close  the  first  time  as  the  roots  might  be  exposed  to  the 
influence  of  the  hot  sun.  It  is  best  to  cease  mowing  in 
the  fall  before  the  winter's  cold  sets  in,  so  that  the  roots 
may  be  protected  by  a  moderate  growth  of  foliage. 

The  lawn  should  be  top-dressed  with  well  rotted 
manure  in  the  winter  or  early  spring.  This  treatment 
should  be  given  each  year  or  at  longer  intervals  according 
to  the  requirements  of  the  soil.  In  lime-poor  soils,  there 
should  also  be  a  dressing  of  lime  at  intervals,  this  to  be 
applied  in  the  winter.  It  is  an  excellent  practice  to 
graze  sheep  upon  large  lawns.  This  is  good  for  the  lawn 


THE  THREE  LEADING  FORAGE  GRASSES       65 

and  good  for  the  sheep.     The  grazing,  tramping  and  the 
deposit  of  manure  are  all  a  benefit  to  the  lawn. 

If  barnyard  manure  is  not  available,  artificial  fertilizer 
should  be  added  when  necessary  to  keep  up  the  fertility 
of  the  soil.  Bone  meal,  woodashes,  and  various  pre- 
pared complete  fertilizers  can  be  used. 

XAWN  WEEDS 

Under  favorable  conditions  of  soil,  climate  and  treat- 
ment a  bluegrass  lawn  should  hold  its  own  against  weeds. 
But  if  conditions  are  not  of  the  best,  a  lawn  becomes 
contaminated  with  weeds.  These  impair  the  appearance 
of  the  lawn  in  two  ways.  The  uniformity  of  texture  and 
color  is  destroyed,  and,  in  the  case  of  annual  weeds  that 
die  off  in  summer  and  fall,  unsightly  bare  spots  are 
developed.  Certain  annual  weeds  may  gain  a  foothold 
in  small  open  spaces  between  the  tufts  of  bluegrass  and 
gradually  crowd  out  the  latter.  These  interlopers  are 
not  noticed  at  first  but  their  presence  is  evident  later, 
especially  in  the  latter  part  of  the  season  when  they  turn 
brown  and  finally  shrivel  and  die.  Weeds  should  be 
removed  as  thoroughly  as  possible  or  they  will  gain  the 
upper  hand.  The  commonest  of  the  annual  weeds  in 
the  region  where  bluegrass  is  grown  are  crab  grass  and 
annual  bluegrass.  Crab  grass  soon  makes  its  presence 
known  by  the  purplish  color  of  the  foliage.  Annual 
bluegrass  is  more  deceiving  because  in  its  early  stages 
it  is  a  pleasing  green  but  lighter  in  color  than  the  blue- 
grass. 

Perennial  weeds  are  more  difficult  to  eradicate.  Some 
of  the  troublesome  perennials  in  the  region  under  con- 


66  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES ' 

sideration  are  dandelion,  wild  onion  and  plantain.  If 
weeds  become  numerous,  it  is  best  to  plow  up  the  lawn 
and  begin  over.  The  deficiencies  in  the  soil  can  then  be 
remedied  and  the  weeds  prevented  from  getting  a  start. 

BLUEGRASS  SEED 

Commercial  bluegrass  seed  comes  mostly  from  a  rather 
limited  area  in  Kentucky.  The  chief  producing  counties 
are  Bourbon,  Fayette  and  Clark.  These  counties  are  in 
the  famous  bluegrass  region  south  of  Cincinnati.  Smaller 
quantities  are  harvested  in  other  parts  of  the  state  espe- 
cially in  the  counties  to  the  west  of  those  mentioned. 
Another  but  less  important  area  is  found  in  northern 
Missouri  and  southern  Iowa. 

The  seed  is  harvested  by  stripping  the  heads,  a  good 
yield  being  20  to  25  bushels  per  acre.  Fields  of  blue- 
grass  can  be  grazed  by  cattle  up  to  about  two  weeks  of 
harvest  with  little  detriment  to  the  seed  crop,  but 
horses  reduce  the  production  as  they  eat  the  heads. 

The  seed  in  the  regions  mentioned  is  harvested  mostly 
in  early  June.  On  the  larger  farms,  horse-drawn 
strippers  are  used  which  pull  the  spikelets  from  the 
stalks.  On  small  fields  hand  strippers  are  used.  The 
seed,  which  contains  much  chaff  and  pieces  of  leaves  and 
stems,  is  piled  in  ricks  either  in  the  open  or  in  sheds. 
The  ricks  are  turned  and  stirred  at  frequent  intervals 
till  dry.  Much  care  must  be  exercised  to  prevent  the 
seed  from  heating,  as  this  destroys  its  vitality  if  the 
process  is  allowed  to  go  far.  The  cured  seed  is  then  sent 
to  the  cleaner.  The  cleaning  machines  remove  the  wool 
from  the  florets  and  separate  the  seed  from  the  chaff. 


THE  THREE  LEADING  FORAGE  GRASSES       67 

The  export  trade  demands  that  fancy  seed  should  weigh 
22  pounds  per  bushel.  The  seed  on  the  domestic 
market  is  usually  lighter  than  this  and  correspondingly 
poor. 

BLUEGRASS  AS  A  WEED 

In  the  alfalfa  regions  of  the  west,  bluegrass  often  be- 
comes a  troublesome  weed  in  alfalfa  fields.  It  thrives 
under  irrigation  and  pushes  in  wherever  the  alfalfa  is 
scanty,  gradually  crowding  out  the  latter.  The  blue- 
grass  does  not  grow  tall  enough  to  replace  the  alfalfa  in 
the  yield  and  there  is  a  distinct  loss.  There  is  no 
remedy  for  a  badly  infested  alfalfa  field  but  to  plow  it 
up  and  start  anew. 

DESCRIPTION 

A  perennial  grass,  usually  i  to  2  feet  tall,  but  under 
favorable  conditions  3  or  even  4  feet  tall,  producing 
slender  creeping  rootstocks  sending  up  new  shoots  at 
intervals,  the  mass  of  rootstocks  finally  forming  a  firm 
sod.  The  stems  erect,  usually  somewhat  tufted,  smooth, 
round  or  very  slightly  flattened  (this  noticeable  by  rolling 
between  thumb  and  finger).  The  leaves  mostly  at  the 
base  of  the  stem.  Sheaths  smooth,  sometimes  some- 
what keeled  or  angled  along  the  back,  the  lower  short, 
but  the  uppermost  long.  Ligule  short  and  very  blunt, 
thin,  about  I  mm.  long,  that  of  the  sterile  shoots  shorter 
and  that  of  the  uppermost  stem  leaf  longer.  Blades 
narrow,  those  of  the  basal  cluster  long  and  slender, 
several  inches  or  even  a  foot  long,  usually  not  over  4  mm. 
wide,  flat  of  folded,  a  cross  section  thus  V-shaped,  the 
tip  suddenly  narrowed  into  a  boat-shaped  point,  the 

6 


68 


A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


uppermost  blade  I  to  3  inches  long,  appressed  to  the 
stem,  slightly  roughened  on  the  edges.  Inflorescence  a 
pyramidal  panicle  3  to  6  inches  long,  the  branches  loosely 


5.  Kentucky  Bluegrass.     A  single  head  or  panicle. 

spreading,  the  lower  in  a  whorl  of  usually  5,  the  others 
clustered  or  scattered,  all  of  them  slender  and  somewhat 
flexuous,  roughened,  naked  at  base,  the  five  in  the  lower 
whorl  of  unequal  length,  one  being  long,  two  shorter  and 


THE  THREE  LEADING  FORAGE  GRASSES       69 

two  still  shorter.  Spikelets  clustered  toward  the  end  and 
upper  half  of  the  branches. 

The  color  of  the  foliage  is  dark  green  rather  than  blue 
green  as  the  name  would  indicate.  In  moist,  shady 
places  the  leaves  often  become  splotched  with  a  white 
powder  due  to  the  presence  of  a  fungus  called  powdery 
mildew. 

The  flowering  period  is  May  to  June  according  to  the 
latitude. 

Details  of  the  Spikelet.* — Spikelet  ovate  or  lanceolate, 
flattened,  3  to  5-flowered,  sometimes  with  more  flowers, 
4  to  6  mm.  long.  Glumes  acute,  smooth,  about  half  as 
long  as  the  spikelet,  the  first  I -nerved,  the  second  3- 
nerved.  .At  maturity  the  florets  separate  from  each 
other  and  from  the  glumes.  Florets  acute,  5-nerved, 
the  apex  thin  and  papery,  often  purple-tinged,  the  mid- 
nerve  and  outer  pair  of  nerves  minutely  hajry,  the  base 
of  the  floret  with  a  tuft  of  fine  cobwebby  hairs.  These 
florets  form  what  is  known  commercially  as  the  seed, 
though  as  in  most  grasses  the  real  seed  is  inside  of 
these. 

Common  Names. — Bluegrass,  in  order  to  distinguish 
it  from  other  species  of  the  genus,  that  is,  from  other 
bluegrasses,  is  called  Kentucky  bluegrass,  this  name 
having  come  into  use  because  of  the  famous  bluegrass 
pastures  of  Kentucky.  In  the  northern  portion  of  its 
range  this  grass  is  usually  known  as  June  grass.  Another 
name  sometimes  heard  or  sometimes  seen  in  books  is 
spear  grass.  In  England,  it  usually  goes  under  the 
scarcely  distinctive  name  of  meadow  grass. 

*  See  page  49. 


yo  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

Botanical  Name. — Poa  pratensis  L.  The  genus  Poa 
includes  the  species  of  bluegrass  of  which  there  are  about 
100,  found  in  all  the  cooler  parts  of  the  world.  Only  a 
few  of  these  have  been  brought  into  cultivation,  the 
species  under  consideration  being  by  far  the  most  im- 
portant. Poa  is  a  word  used  by  the  ancient  Greeks  for 
grass  in  general,  but  Linnaeus  adopted  the  name  for  the 
genus  as  now  understood.  The  term  pratensis  means 
growing  in  meadows. 

BERMUDA  GRASS 

Bermuda  grass  is  the  most  important  pasture  grass  of 
the  Southern  States.  It  is  a  native  of  the  warmer  parts 
of  the  Eastern  Hemisphere,  but  was  early  introduced 
into  America  and  is  now  widely  distributed  in  tropical 
America  and  extends  well  northward  into  the  warmer 
temperate  zo/ie,  being  hardy  as  far  north  as  Washington, 
D.  C.,  and  southern  Kansas.  Bermuda  grass  thrives  on 
the  open  uplands  and  is  the  only  grass  now  in  use  that 
gives  summer  pasturage  in  the  region  mentioned.  In 
moist  valleys  or  in  the  low  land  along  the  coast,  other 
grasses  thrive  and  dispute  its  dominance.  Except  on 
alluvial  bottom  land  it  does  not  grow  rank  enough  for 
hay  and  in  such  locations  other  grasses  may  give  better 
results.  Except  in  the  extreme  South,  Bermuda  at  least 
partially  suspends  growth  during  the  winter  months. 
Hence  it  is  supplemented  by  those  grasses  that  furnish 
winter  pasturage.  It  forms  a  close  sod  by  means  of  its 
rootstocks  and  stolons,  a  habit  which  especially  adapts  it 
to  lawns.  Throughout  the  Southern  States  it  is  the 
only  grass  that  can  be  recommended  for  lawns,  except  in 


THE  THREE  LEADING  FORAGE  GRASSES       7! 

alluvial  land  along  the  Coast  where  carpet  grass  and 
St.  Augustine  grass  are  used. 

Bermuda  grass,  because  of  its  abundant  creeping  root- 
stocks,  is  very  aggressive.  It  freely  occupies  open 
ground  where  it  forms  strong  vigorous  rootstocks  as 
thick  as  a  pencil,  that  penetrate  in  all  directions.  For 
this  reason,  it  is  difficult  to  eradicate  and  becomes  a 
pestiferous  weed.  This  form  is  often  called  wire  grass 
and  it  is  sometimes  difficult  to  convince  farmers  and 
planters  that  this  coarse  aggressive  weed  is  the  same 
as  the  fine-leaved  Bermuda.  But  the  two  forms  are  the 
same  species,  the  difference  in  aspect  being  due  to  the 
different  conditions  under  which  they  grow  or  to  different 
strains  of  the  species. 

Bermuda  does  not  grow  well  with  other  grasses,  but 
may  be  combined  with  Japan  clover,  bur  clover,  black 
medick,  or  sweet  clover. 

BERMUDA  AS  A  PASTURE  GRASS 

Bermuda  pasture  may  be  established  by  sowing  the 
seed  or  by  planting  cuttings.  For  seeding,  it  is  necessary 
to  prepare  the  soil  carefully  as  the  seed  is  very  small. 
The  seed  is  sown  in  early  spring  at  the  rate  of  about 
6  to  8  pounds  per  acre  and  rolled  in,  unless  sown  just 
before  a  rain  when  the  rolling  may  be  omitted.  In  the 
Gulf  States  it  is  recommended  that  Bermuda  be  com- 
bined with  bur  clover  or  with  Japan  clover.  The  pastur- 
age is  more  nutritious  and  the  grazing  may  be  extended 
through  the  entire  season.  The  seed  upon  the  market 
has  been  mostly  imported  from  Australia,  but  much  is 
now  obtained  from  southern  California  and  Arizona. 


72  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

Bermuda  pasture,  when  not  combined  with  other  plants, 
should  furnish  grazing  from  May  to  November.  A 
Bermuda  pasture  may  become  sod  bound  in  a  few  years, 
in  which  case  it  is  best  to  plow  it  up  and  harrow  it  in  the 
spring.  The  rootstocks  make  a  new  start  and  soon 
occupy  the  soil.  Under  favorable  conditions,  an  acre  of 
Bermuda  pasture  should  support  two  cows  for  eight 
months. 

As  the  seed  of  Bermuda  is  high  priced,  pastures  are 
frequently  started  from  cuttings.  The  cuttings  are  ob- 
tained by  chopping  sod  into  small  pieces.  These  pieces 
may  be  planted  in  furrows,  the  soil  being  turned  back 
over  them,  not  covering  them  more  than  2  inches,  or 
the  pieces  may  be  forced  into  soft  soil  by  stepping  on 
them.  The  pieces  may  be  planted  two  feet  apart  each 
way,  so  easily  can  Bermuda  be  started  that  the  distance 
apart  of  the  planting  is  not  very  material.  If  large 
quantities  of  cuttings  are  wanted,  a  field  of  the  grass  may 
be  plowed  and  the  roots  harrowed  into  windrows  for  use. 
A  carelessly  cultivated  corn  or  cotton  field,  if  infested 
with  Bermuda,  may  be  so  completely  filled  in  a  season 
that  it  is  ready  for  pasture  the  following  year. 

BERMUDA  FOR  LAWNS 

Bermuda  has  all  the  desirable  qualities  of  a  lawn  grass 
except  that  of  holding  its  color  during  the  winter.  The 
color  in  summer  is  a  light  green  which,  to  some,  is  not 
so  pleasing  as  the  dark  green  of  bluegrass.  But  at  the 
approach  of  cold  weather  it  turns  brown  or  tawny  and 
does  not  become  green  again  until  rather  late  in  the 
spring.  Nevertheless,  it  is  the  best  lawn  grass,  for  the 


THE  THREE  LEADING  FORAGE  GRASSES       73 

South,  of  any  now  in  cultivation,  except  on  mucky  soil 
along  the  coast  where  carpet  grass  and  St.  Augustine 
grass  may  be  used.  Both  these  grasses  are  much  coarser 
than  Bermuda  and  do  not  produce  a  surface  so  pleasing 
in  texture. 

St.  Lucie  grass  is  a  form  of  Bermuda  especially  adapted 
for  lawns.  It  is  somewhat  finer  in  texture  and  the  pro- 
pagating stems  are  more  upon  the  surface.  This  form 
is  much  used  in  Florida.  Giant  Bermuda  is  a  rank- 
growing  form  producing  stems  two  feet  or  more  in 
height,  and  is  adapted  to  rich  moist  soils. 

A  lawn  may  be  started  by  transplanting  sod  or  by 
sowing  the  seed.  If  sod  is  used,  care  should  be  taken  to 
select  a  pure  stand  of  a  fine-textured  strain.  If  seed  is 
used,  the  soil  should  be  carefully  prepared,  pulverized 
and  leveled.  To  insure  an  even  stand,  the  seed  should 
be  sown  evenly  and  rather  thickly.  Usually  under  favor- 
able conditions,  the  Bermuda  will  soon  completely  occupy 
the  soil.  If  necessary,  the  lawn  should  be  watered  and 
the  weeds  removed.  Like  all  lawns  it  is  improved  by 
mowing  and  rolling. 

METHODS  OF  ERADICATION 

The  ease  with  which  Bermuda  becomes  established, 
and  the  aggressiveness  with  which  it  spreads,  render  it  a 
troublesome  weed  in  cultivated  soil,  and  make  it  difficult 
to  eradicate  when  it  has  once  occupied  the  soil.  Methods 
of  eradication  depend  upon  the  fact  that  it  does  not 
thrive  in  the  shade.  Therefore  the  easiest  and  quickest 
method  is  to  smother  it  with  some  quick-growing  crop. 
A  very  good  way  to  convert  Bermuda  pasture  or  meadow 


74 


A  MANUAL  OF   FARM   GRASSES 


into  land  fit  for  a  cultivated  crop  such  as  corn  or  cotton, 
is  to  plow  in  the  fall  and 
sow  thickly  to  grain.  After 
the  grain  is  harvested, 
plow  the  land  immediately 
and  plant  thickly  to  cow- 
peas.  If  the  cowpeas  are 
planted  in  rows  and  culti- 
vated till  the  vines  meet, 
the  ground  will  be  shaded 
and  the  Bermuda  smoth- 
ered out.  Usually  one  sea- 
son of  this  treatment  is 
sufficient  if  the  grain  and 
peas  have  made  a  good 
growth.  Some  roots  of  Ber- 
muda may  remain  alive 
and  the  field  will  in  time 
become  infested  with  Ber- 
muda and  can  then  be  used 
for  pasture.  In  this  way 
there  is  a  favorable  rota-, 
tion  of  crops. 


DESCRIPTION 

A  low  perennial,  exten- 
sively spreading  by  creeping 
stems,  those  below  ground 
called  roots  tocks,  those 
above  ground  called  stolons ; 


6.  Bermuda  Grass.  A  plant 
showing  the  creeping  base,  and  a 
fertile  stem  with  a  cluster  of  five 
flower  spikes. 


flowering  stems  in  open  ground  only  a  few  inches  high 


THE  THREE  LEADING  FORAGE  GRASSES       75 

but  in  alluvial  soil  or  in  the  shade,  as  much  as  2  feet 
tall,  erect  or  decumbent  at  base;  sheaths  smooth,  com- 
pressed, keeled,  bearing  a  tuft  of  hairs  on  each  side 
at  the  summit;  blades  flat,  1/2  to  2  inches  long,  or  on 
sterile  shoots,  longer,  somewhat  roughened,  especially 
on  the  margin,  sharp-pointed;  ligule  a  very  short  mem- 
brane, hairy  on  the  edge;  inflorescence  consisting  of  3  to 
6  slender  spikes,  I  or  2  inches  long,  all  closely  clustered 
at  the  summit  of  the  stems,  pubescent  or  fuzzy  at  the 
base;  axis  of  the  spike  1/3  to  1/2  mm.  wide,  the  spike- 
lets  closely  arranged  along  one  side. 

Details  of  the  Spikelet. — Spikelets  I -flowered,  com- 
pressed, about  2  mm.  long,  tawny  green  or  purplish; 
glumes  two,  narrow,  pointed,  scabrous  on  the  keel, 
shorter  than  the  spikelet;  lemma  boat-shaped,  pubescent 
on  the  margins  and  often  on  the  keel. 

Common  Names. — Bermuda  grass  is  the  most  widely 
used  name  in  this  country.  In  the  southwestern  states, 
it  is  known  as  devil  grass,  and  the  weedy  form  in  the 
southern  states  is  called  wire  grass,  or  occasionally 
scutch  grass.  It  was  probably  introduced  from  the 
Bermuda  Islands,  where,  however  it  is  not  native.  Its 
native  country  is  the  Mediterranean  region  and  southern 
Asia.  In  the  West  Indies,  at  least  in  the  English  islands, 
it  is  usually  known  as  Bahama  grass.  In  Cuba  and  other 
Spanish  countries  it  is  known  as  grama,  which  means 
grass,  or  hierba  fina,  which  means  fine  grass,  hierba  del 
prado,  which  means  park  grass  and  pato  de  gallina, 
which  means  chicken-foot.  The  German  and  French 
names  for  the  grass  mean  dog's-tooth.  In  India,  it  is 
called  sacred  grass.  In  Australia,  it  is  called  couch  or 


76  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

Indian  couch.     In  the  Hawaiian   Islands,   it  is  called 
manienie  (ma-ne-a-ne-a) . 

Botanical  Name. —  Capriola  Dactylon  (L.)  Kuntze; 
Cynodon  Dactylon  Pers.;  Panicum  Dactylon  L.  There 
is  but  one  common  species  of  the  genus  and  this  is 
widely  distributed  in  the  warm  regions  of  both  hemis- 
pheres. The  name  Capriola  comes  from  a  Latin  word  for 
goat,  probably  given  because  goats  feed  on  the  grass. 
The  specific  name  Dactylon  is  a  reference  to  the  inflores- 
cence, from  the  Greek  word  for  finger,  the  spikes  spread- 
ing from  one  point  like  the  fingers  on  the  hand.  The 
other  generic  name,  Cynodon,  in  common  use,  means 
dog-tooth,  given  probably  because  of  the  old  pointed 
sheaths  on  the  stolons  and  rootstocks.  The  giant 
Bermuda  is  Capriola  Dactylon  var.  maritima. 


CHAPTER  VII 
OTHER  IMPORTANT  FORAGE   GRASSES 

IN  addition  to  the  grasses  already  considered,  there  are 
several  that  are  important  in  certain  areas  and  for  certain 
purposes,  though  when  compared  with  the  three  leading 
species  they  are  decidedly  secondary,  both  as  to  quantity 
and  value. 

REDTOP 

Next  to  timothy,  red  top  is  probably  the  most  impor- 
tant meadow  grass  in  the  humid  region,  that  is,  in  broad 
terms,  the  timothy  region.  It  is  used  also  for  pasture, 
for  which  purpose  it  ranks  next  to  bluegrass.  Redtop 
does  not  compete  with  timothy  or  with  bluegrass  but 
supplements  them,  for  it  thrives  in  soils  too  moist  for 
timothy  or  in  lime-poor  soils  where  bluegrass  is  not  at 
its  best.  Hence  it  is  that  redtop  is  used  alone  or  in 
mixtures  for  moist  soil,  or,  on  the  other  hand,  for  com- 
paratively dry  but  sterile  soil,  or  for  the  so-called  acid 
soils  that  are  poor  in  lime.  Redtop  is  grown  especially 
in  New  England,  the  North  Atlantic  States  and  in  moist 
or  lime-poor  soils  elsewhere,  especially  in  Missouri  and 
southern  Illinois.  It  becomes  more  important  than 
timothy  in  the  belt  just  south  of  the  timothy  region 
from  Arkansas  and  northern  Louisiana,  through  northern 
Mississippi  and  northern  Alabama  to  North  Carolina. 
In  this  belt  it  is  frequently  called  Herd's  grass. 
77 


A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


Seed. — The   seed  of  redtop   is 
usually  mixed  with  much   chaff, 
that  is,  the   glumes    from  which 
the  florets  have  fallen.     The  re- 
cleaned    seed    contains    a    much 
larger      proportion     of 
seed  and  is  correspond- 
ingly    heavier.      Ordi- 
nary redtop  seed  weighs 
10    to    12    pounds   per 
bushel. 

If  redtop  is  used  alone 
for  meadow  or  pasture, 
12  to  1 8  pounds  of  re- 
cleaned  seed  should  be 
sown  per  acre.     If  ordi- 
nary seed   is  used   the 
amount    must    be    in- 
creased   to    50    or    60 
pounds    per    acre.      It 
is     much    more    satis- 
factory to    use    recleaned    seed. 
If  redtop  is  used   in  a  mixture, 
as  is  jnore  often   the  case,   the 
amount    is    reduced,    often     to 
i    or   2  pounds  of   the  re- 
cleaned 
seed  per 
acre. 


7.  Redtop.     A  single   head  or  panicle,  and  a  base  showing  the 
creeping  rootstocks  by  which  the  grass  spreads. 


OTHER   IMPORTANT   FORAGE   GRASSES  79 

Description. — An  erect  perennial,  I  to  3  feet  tall,  or 
sometimes  taller  in  favorable  localities,  the  base  often 
decumbent,  producing  creeping  rootstocks;  sheaths 
smooth;  blades  flat,  rough  on  both  surfaces,  mostly  4  to 
8  inches  long,  narrowed  into  a  long  sharp  point,  the 
ligule  thin,  pointed,  as  much  as  6  mm',  long  (1/4  inch); 
panicle  usually  4  to  8  inches  long,  broadest  near  the 
bottom  and  narrowing  toward  the  top,  pale  or  often 
purplish  or  brownish,  the  branches  in  whorls,  horizontally 
spreading  or  somewhat  ascending,  some  of  the  branches 
naked  below,  others  shorter  and  flower-bearing  mostly 
to  the  base,  the  upper  branches  scattered  and  more 
ascending,  all  rough  to  the  touch.  After  flowering  the 
panicle  may  partially  close. 

Details  of  the  Spikelet.— Spikelets  one- flowered,  small, 
only  2  to  3  mm.  long  (2/25  to  3/25  inch);  glumes  2, 
about  equal,  gradually  narrowed  to  a  sharp  point,  rough- 
ened on  the  keel;  lemma  a  little  shorter  than  the  glumes, 
thin  and  transparent,  rather  blunt;  palea  half  to  two- 
thirds  as  long  as  the  lemma  and  like  it  in  texture. 

Common  Names. — The  usual  name  is  redtop  but  it  is 
called  in  some  localities,  especially  in  Pennsylvania  and 
the  Southern  States,  Herd's  grass.  The  latter  name  is 
sometimes  applied  to  timothy  and  should,  for  the  sake 
of  precision,  be  discarded.  The  name  redtop  is  char- 
acteristic because  in  the  cultivated  form,  the  panicle  is 
usually  purplish  or  brownish  at  flowering  time  though  it 
may  become  pale  or  faded  at  maturity. 

Botanical  Name. — Agrostis  palustris  Huds.  The  ge- 
nus Agrostis  includes  a  large  number  of  species  (about 
100)  found  in  temperate  and  cool  regions  all  over  the 


8O  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

world.  There  are  25  species  in  the  United  States  espe- 
cially in  our  western  mountains.  Most  of  the  species  are 
good  forage  grasses  and  constitute  a  considerable  portion 
of  the  native  forage  of  mountain  meadows.  The  name 
Agrostis  is  derived  from  a  Greek  word  meaning  field 
and  was  used  by  the  Greeks  for  a  kind  of  grass.  Lin- 
naeus applied  the  name  to  the  genus  above  mentioned. 
The  specific  name  palustris  means  swampy,  referring  to 
the  fact  that  it  grows  in  moist  soil.  Another  name  that 
has  been  commonly  applied  to  redtop  is  Agrostis  alba. 

ORCHARD  GRASS 

Compared  with  timothy,  orchard  grass  is  unimportant, 
but  among  the  grasses  of  minor  importance  it  stands  in 
the  front  rank.  It  is  used  for  both  hay  and  pasture  in 
the  humid  region,  especially  from  Virginia  and  Kentucky 
to  northern  Alabama.  Orchard  grass  has  many  good 
qualities,  among  which  are  yield,  palatability,  early 
starting  of  growth  in  the  spring,  and  ability  to  remain 
green  during  hot  summers  and  well  into  the  fall.  Its 
chief  drawback  is  the  habit  of  growing  in  tussocks  which 
interferes  with  its  use  as  a  meadow  grass.  The  high  cost 
of  the  seed  also  militates  against  its  use,  though  the  cost 
would  decrease  if  the  demand  called  for  a  greater  supply, 
because  good  seed  is  easily  produced.  Timothy  has  such 
a  dominating  position  in  the  hay  markets  of  the  country 
that  orchard  grass  and  other  good  grasses  cannot  com- 
pete with  it,  a  condition  which  discourages  its  production 
for  hay  to  be  sold.  The  quality  of  orchard  grass  suffers 
more  than  does  that  of  timothy  by  remaining  after 
flowering  before  being  cut.  For  this  reason,  orchard 


OTHER  IMPORTANT  FORAGE  GRASSES        8 1 

grass  has  not  been  grown  much  where  timothy  is  at  its 
best,  but  finds  favor  along  the  southern  border  of  the 
timothy  region  where  the  summers  are  long  and  dry. 
It  withstands  drouth  rather  better  than  does  timothy  and 
hence  can  be  used  somewhat  west  of  the  region  where 
timothy  thrives.  When  sown  alone,  20  to  25  pounds  of 
good  seed  per  acre  should  be  used.  By  mixing  orchard 
grass  with  some  other  grass,  such  as  meadow  fescue,  a 
smoother  surface  is  produced  than  by  using  the  former 
alone. 

Orchard  grass  was  brought  into  cultivation  about  the 
middle  of  the  eighteenth  century.  It  is  one  of  the  im- 
portant meadow  grasses  of  Europe.  Beal  states  that  it 
did  not  attract  much  attention  in  England  until  sent 
back  there  from  Virginia  in  1764. 

The  seed  of  orchard  grass  of  American  origin  is  mostly 
grown  in  the  vicinity  of  Louisville,  Kentucky.  Much 
seed  is  imported  from  New  Zealand. 

Description. — An  erect  perennial,  2  to  4  feet,  growing 
in  tussocks,  without  rootstocks;  sheaths  flattened  and 
somewhat  keeled,  smooth  or  roughened,  closed  part  way 
or  nearly  all  the  way,  the  ligule  prominent,  thin  and 
papery,  the  uppermost  about  one-third  of  an  inch  long; 
blades  flat,  about  one-third  of  an  inch  wide,  rough  on 
both  surfaces,  tapering  into  a  slender  point;  panicle  3  to 
6  inches  long,  the  few  branches  spreading  at  flowering 
time,  afterwards  closed,  singly  disposed,  naked  below, 
bearing  towards  the  ends  a  few  one-sided  clusters  of 
spikelets,  the  clusters  about  1/2  inch  wide. 

Details  of  the  Spikelet. — Spikelet  3  or  4-flowered, 
compressed,  ab9ut  one-third  inch  long;  first  glume 


82  A   MANUAL   OF    FARM    GRASSES 

I -nerved,  acute,  the  second  3-nerved  and  acuminate,  a 
line  of  minute  bristles  along  the  keel;  lemmas  5-nerved, 
bristly  along  the  keel,  extending  into  a  short  awn  at  the 
apex. 


8.  Orchard  Grass.  Two  heads  or  panicles,  one  in  flower,  the 
branches  spreading,  the  other  in  fruit  or  seed,  showing  how  the 
branches  close  up  after  flowering. 

Common  Names. — In  this  country  this  grass  is  uni- 
formly known  as  orchard  grass,  probably  because  in  the 


OTHER  IMPORTANT  FORAGE  GRASSES        83 

early  days  it  was  sown  in  orchards.  In  England,  it  is 
called  cock's-foot,  in  allusion  to  the  spreading  branches 
of  the  inflorescence  when  in  flower. 

Botanical  Name. — Dactylis  glomerate  L.  The  generic 
name  Dactylis  is  derived  from  a  Greek  word  meaning 
finger  in  allusion  to  the  finger-like  branches  of  the  in- 
florescence. The  specific  name  glomerata,  clustered, 
refers  to  the  clusters  of  spikelets  at  the  ends  of  the 
branches. 

MEADOW  FESCUE 

Like  orchard  grass,  meadow  fescue  holds  a  secondary 
though  not  unimportant  place  in  American  agriculture. 
It  has  many  good  qualities  but  has  not  been  able  to 
compete  with  timothy.  The  chief  reason  for  this  is 
probably  the  relatively  high  cost  and  poor  quality  of  the 
seed.  Furthermore,  the  yield  is  usually  not  so  high  as 
that  of  timothy.  Meadow  fescue  however  is  a  nutri- 
tious and  palatable  grass  and  makes  an  excellent  quality 
of  hay.  It  is  grown  for  both  hay  and  pasture  throughout 
the  timothy  region  but  nowhere  abundantly.  It  has 
become  a  rather  important  grass  in  the  eastern  portion 
of  the  Great  Plains  region,  especially  in  eastern  Kansas. 
Meadow  fescue  is  to  be  recommended  in  combination 
with  other  grasses,  especially  where  used  for  pasture. 
In  eastern  Kansas  it  is  used  to  advantage  in  combination 
with  orchard  grass.  For  meadow,  it  makes  a  good  filler 
with  orchard  grass,  filling  in  the  spaces  between  the 
tussocks  of  the  latter,  thus  giving  a  better  basis  for  a 
mowing  machine.  In  the  region  mentioned,  the  combi- 
nation has  the  advantage  over  timothy  of  being  more 
drouth  resistant  and  can  therefore  be  used  somewhat 

7 


84 


A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


west  of  the  area  best  suited  to  timothy.  Meadow  fescue 
is  being  used  to  some  extent  also  in 
the  Pacific  Northwest. 

Most  of  the  seed  grown  in  this 
country  is  produced  in  southeast- 
ern Kansas. 

Description. — A  rather  tall  per- 
ennial, sometimes  with  short  root- 
stocks;  stems  erect,  I  to  4  feet 
tall,  usually  2  to  3  feet;  sheaths 
smooth;  blades  flat,  1/12  to  1/5 
inch  wide,  rough  on  the  upper  sur- 
face; panicle  erect,  nodding  at  the 
apex,  narrow  but  spreading  in 
flower,  4  to  8  inches  long,  the 
branches  mostly  singly  disposed, 
bearing  few  rather  large  spikelets. 
Details  of  the  Spikelet— Spike- 
lets  several-flowered ,  oblong,  about 
1/2  inch  long,  smooth  and  green, 
the  florets  usually  7  or  8;  glumes 
lanceolate,  somewhat  unequal, 
about  half  as  long  as  the  first 
floret;  lemmas  rounded  on  the 
back,  finely  nerved,  scarious  at 
the  acute  apex. 

Common  Names.  —  Meadow 
fescue  is  the  recognized  name  for 
the  species.  The  taller  form,  as 
described  under  the  paragraph  on 

botanical  names,  is  called  tall  fescue.     In  some  parts  of 


9.  Meadow  Fescue.   A 
single  head  or  panicle. 


OTHER  IMPORTANT  FORAGE  GRASSES        85 

the  country,  especially  in  eastern  Kansas,  the  species 
is  known  as  English  bluegrass.  This  is  an  unfortunate 
application  of  the  name  as  it  is  more  properly  applied 
to  Poa  compressa,  and  because  the  species  in  question 
does  not  belong  to  the  bluegrass  group. 

Botanical  Name. — Festuca  elatior  L.  Festuca  is  an 
old  Latin  name  applied  to  a  kind  of  grass.  The  specific 
name,  meaning  taller,  refers  to  its  comparative  height, 
the  plant  being  taller  than  the  other  species  described 
at  the  same  time.  The  species  has  also  been  known  as 
Festuca  pratensis  Huds.  The  two  names,  however,  apply 
to  the  same  form.  As  mentioned  elsewhere,  there  are 
two  forms  of  the  species,  one  called  meadow  fescue  as 
already  described.  The  other  is  called  tall  fescue.  This 
second  form  is  more  robust  and  has  a  larger,  more  open 
panicle.  Some  botanists  have  applied  the  name  Festuca 
pratensis  to  the  first  and  F,  pratensis  var.  elatior,  or  F. 
elatior  to  the  second.  The  original  descriptions  of 
F.  elatior  and  F.  pratensis  apply  to  the  same  form,  the 
taller  form  not  having  received  a  distinct  botanical  name. 
The  differences  between  the  forms  are  agricultural  rather 
than  botanical. 

JOHNSON   GRASS 

Johnson  grass  is  one  of  the  most  important  hay- 
grasses  for  the  Southern  States.  It  is  palatable,  nutri- 
tious, a  vigorous  grower  and  yields  large  crops.  It 
thrives  best  on  alluvial  bottoms  and  is  especially  adapted 
to  the  black  prairie  soils  of  Alabama  and  Texas.  John- 
son grass  is  somewhat  tender  and  will  not  stand  the  cold 
winters  of  the  North  but  can  be  grown  successfully 
throughout  the  southern  humid  region,  that  is,  the 


86  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

Cotton  Belt.  While  best  adapted  to  meadows,  it  can 
be  used  for  pasture  but  does  not  well  withstand  the 
trampling  of  stock.  Furthermore  there  has  been  some 
trouble  from  the  poisoning  of  stock  as  the  plants  under 
certain  conditions  may  produce  hydrocyanic  acid  as  do 
sorghum  and  its  allies.  Johnson  grass  is  closely  related 
to  the  sorghums,  belonging  to  the  same  genus,  hence 
might  be  expected  to  produce  the  same  poison. 

Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  Johnson  grass  gives 
excellent  results  as  a  meadow  grass,  it  becomes  under 
certain  conditions  an  extremely  pestiferous  weed.  This 
is  due  to  its  aggressiveness.  After  once  occupying  a 
field,  it  is  eradicated  with  great  difficulty.  For  this 
reason,  many  farmers  hesitate  to  plant  it  or  allow  it  to 
obtain  a  foothold  upon  their  places.  In  another  para- 
graph will  be  given  directions  for  eradicating  this  grass 
when  a  meadow  is  needed  for  other  purposes. 

Eradication  of  Johnson  Grass. — The  eradication  of 
Johnson  grass  depends  upon  suppressing  the  growth  of 
the  rootstocks.*  Where  cultural  methods  can  be  used 
it  is  recommended  that  the  infested  field  be  turned  into  a 
meadow  or  pasture  and  that  the  grass  be  kept  closely 
cropped,  either  by  grazing  animals  upon  it  or  by  mowing 
it  for  one  or  more  seasons.  If  the  plants  are  not  allowed 
to  blossom  the  rootstock  development  is  reduced  and 
what  is  produced  remains  near  the  surface.  After  the 
sod  has  remained  undisturbed  for  a  year  the  soil  is 
plowed  shallow,  thus  throwing  up  most  of  the  rootstocks. 

*  A  full  account  of  the  experiments  with  Johnson  grass  and  the 
different  methods  tried  in  Texas  for  its  eradication  will  be  found  in 
Farmers'  Bulletin  279  (U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.). 


OTHER  IMPORTANT  FORAGE  GRASSES        87 

The  field  is  then  planted  in  a  cultivated  crop.  This 
crop  should  be  given  extra  cultivation  and  stray  plants 
of  Johnson  grass  pulled  up  by  hand  when  it  heads  out. 

In  regions  where  Johnson  grass  is  common  it  may  be 
rotated  with  grain.  The  sod  is  broken  in  the  late  summer 
and  oats  or  other  small  grain  sown  in  the  early  fall. 
After  the  grain  is  harvested  in  the  spring  the  grass  is 
allowed  to  grow  and  will  produce  two  or  sometimes  three 
crops  of  hay.  In  the  late  summer  the  land  is  again 
broken  for  the  small  grain.  In  this  way  a  fair  crop  of 
grain  is  secured  in  addition  to  a  good  hay  crop. 

Description. — Stems  rather  stout,  erect,  3  to  5  feet 
tall,  producing  strong  scaly  rootstocks;  sheaths  smooth; 
blades  flat,  smooth,  roughened  on  the  edges,  I  to  3  feet 
long,  1/4  to  1/2  inch  wide,  tapering  to  a  fine  point,  the 
white  midrib  conspicuous;  panicle  6  inches  to  2  feet 
long,  large  and  open  like  oats  or  sorghum,  usually 
purplish,  the  branches  2  to  4  together,  naked  below; 
spikelets  somewhat  crowded  along  the  upper  half  or  two- 
thirds  of  the  branches.  The  blades  and  sheaths  are 
often  splashed  with  purple  as  in  sorghum,  this  being  due 
to  a  bacterial  disease. 

Details  of  the  Spikelet. — Spikelets  in  pairs  or  the 
terminal  in  3*3,  one  sessile  and  fertile,  the  other  I  or  2 
pediceled  and  staminate.  Fertile  spikelet  about  5  mm. 
long,  dorsally  flattened,  elliptic  or  ovate-lanceolate,  in- 
distinctly nerved,  firm  and  coriaceous,  often  bearing  a 
twisted  and  bent  awn  about  as  long  as  or  a  little  longer 
than  the  spikelet,  at  first  pubescent  but  later  becoming 
smooth  and  shining  on  the  exposed  parts.  Staminate 
spikelets  more  slender,  slightly  longer  than  the  fertile, 


88 


A   MANUAL   OF   FARM   GRASSES 


10.  Johnson  Grass.  A  flower  head  or  panicle,  and  a  base  showing 
the  strong  creeping  rootstocks  by  which  the  grass  spreads  and  which 
render  it  such  an  aggressive  weed. 


OTHER  IMPORTANT  FORAGE  GRASSES        89 

distinctly  nerved,  membranaceous,  the  pedicel  about 
half  as  long  as  the  fertile  spikelet,  ciliate. 

When  threshed,  the  fertile  spikelet  or  seed  loses  its 
awn  and  the  staminate  spikelets,  and  disarticulates  from 
the  pedicel  but  retains  the  i  or  2  pedicels  of  the  staminate 
spikelet  which  stand  behind  the  seed. 

Common  Name. — Johnson  grass  is  universally  used  in 
the  United  States  for  this  species,  being  one  of  the  few 
species  to  which  but  one  common  name  has  been  applied. 
In  Cuba  it  is  called  hierba  de  Don  Carlos. 

Botanical  Name. —  Holcus  halepensis  L.  The  name 
Holcus  was  originally  applied  to  sorghum  and  its  allies. 
Linnaeus  used  this  name,  but  included  in  the  genus 
several  diverse  species  which  have  since  been  transferred 
to  other  genera.  The  specific  name  refers  to  the  town 
of  Aleppo  in  Syria.  The  species  has  been  referred  to 
Andropogon  as  A.  halepensis  Brot.,  and  has  also  been 
called  Sorghum  halepense  Pers. 

BROME   GRASS 

This  grass  was  introduced  into  the  agriculture  of  the 
United  States  and  grown  on  a  commercial  scale  in  the 
latter  part  of  the  last  century,  mostly  since  1890.  The 
grass  is  a  native  of  Europe  and  was  introduced  into 
cultivation  there  a  few  years  before  it  came  into  notice 
here.  Brome  grass  has  proved  of  value  in  the  region 
from  northern  Kansas  to  western  Minnesota  and  west- 
ward to  eastern  Washington.  It  is  more  drouth  re- 
sistant than  the  ordinary  eastern  meadow  grasses  and 
consequently  fits  into  the  agriculture  of  the  region 
mentioned,  where  the  conditions  are  too  severe  for 


A   MANUAL   OF    FARM    GRASSES 


timothy  and  clover.  In  many  parts  of  the  humid  region 
especially  in  Wisconsin  and  from 
Ohio  to  Virginia  brome  grass  may 
be  grown  but  there  it  must  com- 
pete with  timothy  which  with  suffi- 
cient moisture  gives  a  greater  yield. 
In  the  more  arid  districts  especi- 
ally toward  the  south,  brome  grass 
does  not  do  well  except  when  irri- 
gated. Under  irrigation,  however, 
other  grasses  are  usually  more 
satisfactory.  It  is,  therefore,  of 
chief  importance  in  the  triangular 
region  embracing  the  northern  por- 
tion of  the  Great  Plains  and  ex- 
tending further  west  along  the 
northern  border  of  the  United 
States. 

Brome  grass  can  be  used  for 
meadow  or  for  pasture.  The  seed 
may  be  sown  in  the  spring  or  in 
the  fall,  or  at  any  time  between 
when  the  conditions  are  favorable. 
It  is  especially  valuable  for  pas- 
ture, the  vigorous  roots tocks  form- 
ing a  firm  sod.  In  a  few  years 
ii.  Brome  Grass.  A  these  rootstocks  occupy  the  soil 

head  or  panicle    and   a  fa  h 

single  spikelet  enlarged. 

comes   necessary  to  loosen  up  the 

ground  by  disking,  or  it  may  be  advisable  to  plow  up 
and  reseed. 


OTHER   IMPORTANT   FORAGE    GRASSES  QI 

The  seed  is  light  and  chaffy,  weighing  14  pounds  to 
the  bushel.  It  is  usually  sown  broadcast  at  the  rate  of 
20  pounds  per  acre. 

Description. — A  hardy  smooth  erect  perennial,  usually 
2  or  3  feet  tall,  producing  strong  creeping  rootstocks. 
Blades  flat,  1/5  to  1/3  inch  wide,  somewhat  roughened, 
bearing  at  the  base  a  pair  of  minute  auricles.  Panicles 
or  flower  heads  4  to  6  inches  long,  somewhat  open  and 
spreading,  the  branches  naked  below,  the  lower  in 
clusters  or  fascicles. 

Details  of  the  Spikelet. — Spikelets  about  an  inch  long, 
brown  or  purplish,  8  to  lo-flowered,  slightly  flattened; 
first  glume  narrow,  acute,  I -nerved,  5  mm.  long,  the 
second  broader  and  longer,  obtuse,  3-nerved;  lemma  5  to 
y-nerved,  the  nerves  scabrous,  the  apex  awnless  or  with  a 
very  short  awn. 

Common  Names. — The  name  brome  is  taken  from 
Bromus,  the  botanical  name  of  the  genus.  Other  names 
applied  occasionally  to  the  species  are:  awnless  brome 
grass,  because  the  spikelets  are  nearly  or  quite  awnless, 
while  many  species  of  the  genus  are  awned;  Hungarian 
brome  grass,  because  it  was  grown  in  Hungary  whence 
seed  was  obtained  for  trial  in  this  country;  smooth 
brome  grass,  because  it  is  not  hairy.  Many  farmers 
know  it  by  its  botanical  name,  Bromus  inermis. 

Botanical  Name. — Bromus  inermis  Leyss.  The  gen- 
eric name  is  from  the  Greek  name  for  food,  and  was 
applied  by  the  Greeks  to  oats. 

Linnaeus  gave  the  name  to  a  group  of  grasses  now 
known  to  include  numerous  species,  both  native  and 
foreign.  The  specific  name,  meaning  unarmed,  refers 
to  the  absence  of  awns. 


CHAPTER  VIII 
GRASSES   OF  MINOR  IMPORTANCE 

THERE  are  several  kinds  of  grasses  that  are  mentioned 
in  books  on  forage  plants  and  in  seed  catalogues,  which 
are  of  minor  importance  either  because  of  the  restricted 
area  in  which  they  may  be  grown  or  because  of  the  limited 
use  to  which  they  are  put.  While  these  grasses  are  of 
little  importance  commercially,  it  is  necessary  that  the 
farmer  should  be  acquainted  with  them  -in  order  that 
he  may  not  be  misled  by  the  too  sanguine  opinion  of  the 
writers  in  the  farm  journals,  or  by  the  flamboyant 
advertisements  in  seed  catalogues. 

RHODE  ISLAND  BENT  AND  CARPET  BENT 
These  two  grasses  are  closely  related  to  redtop  but  are 
more  delicate,  the  leaves-  being  finer,  the  stems  thinner 
and  not  so  tall,  and  the  panicle  smaller  and  more  open. 
Both  grasses  are  suited  to  lawns  and  golf  courses,  as 
they  produce  a  fine  close  turf.  They  do  not  produce 
rootstocks  as  does  bluegrass  but  the  stems  are  creeping 
at  the  base,  especially  those  of  carpet  bent. 

The  bent  grasses  thrive  on  lime-poor  soils  in  New 
England  and  many  parts  of  the  North  and  Middle 
Atlantic  States,  in  fact,  in  about  the  same  region  that  is 
favorable  for  redtop. 

The  method  of  preparation  of  a  lawn  with  these  grasses 
is  similar  to  that  given  under  bluegrass.     Success  de- 
92 


GRASSES   OF  MINOR  IMPORTANCE  93 

pends  much  upon  using  seed  of  good  quality.  From  60 
to  100  pounds  of  seed  should  be  used  per  acre.  The 
seed  should  be  examined  and  the  proportion  of  seed  and 
chaff  noted.  If  the  proportion  of  chaff  is  large,  the 
amount  of  seed  used  should  be  increased.  In  the  south- 
ern portion  of  the  range,  the  seeding  should  be  done  in 
the  early  fall;  in  the  north,  it  should  be  done  in  the 
spring. 

Rhode  Island  bent  is  a  common  and  well-established 
grass  in  New  England  and  in  many  places  along  the  coast 
to  the  south.  The  seed  is  now  rarely  to  be  found  upon 
the  market,  but  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture  is 
encouraging  its  production  and  use.  The  seed  that  is 
now  sold  by  seedsmen  under  the  name  of  Rhode  Island 
bent  is  imported  from  South  Germany  and  consists 
mostly  of  carpet  bent  mixed  with  varying  quantities 
of  another  kind  of  bent  grass  called  velvet  bent.  The 
presence  of  velvet  bent  in  samples  of  Rhode  Island  bent 
shows  that  it  comes  from  Germany.  This  South  German 
mixed  bent  is  a  satisfactory  grass  for  lawns.  Not  infre- 
quently seedsmen  have  sold  ordinary  redtop  under  the 
name  of  Rhode  Island  bent.  As  redtop  is  not  well 
suited  to  lawns  the  substitution  is  harmful. 

Description. — Rhode  Island  bent  is  closely  related  to 
redtop  from  which  it  differs  in  being  lower  and  more 
delicate,  with  a  smaller  open  rather  few-flowered  panicle. 
The  stems  are  usually  only  about  a  foot  high  and  the 
blades  are  narrower  than  those  of  redtop.  An  important 
difference  is  in  the  shape  of  the  ligule.  In  redtop,  the 
ligule  is  acute,  as  much  as  1/4  inch  long.  In  Rhode 
Island  bent  the  ligule  is  blunt,  often  not  more  than  I/I2 


94 


A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


inch  long.  The  stems  may  be  erect  at  base  or  they  may- 
produce  short  stolons.  The  spikelets  are  about  the  same 
as  in  redtop,  but  average  smaller. 


12.  Rhode  Island  Bent.     A  seed  head  or  panicle. 

Botanical  and  Common  Names. — Agrostis  capillaris  L., 
Rhode    Island  bent,  is    a  close  alley  of    redtop.     The 


GRASSES   OF   MINOR   IMPORTANCE  95 

specific  name  means  hairlike.  The  grass  was  so  named 
because  of  the  delicate  branches  of  the  panicle.  It  has 
also  been  called  Agrostis  vulgaris  With.,  Agrostis  alba  var. 
vulgaris  (With.)  Thurb.  and  Agrostis  tennis  Sibth. 
Carpet  bent,  the  chief  ingredient  of  South  German 
mixed  bent,  is  Agrostis  stolonifera  L.  Velvet  bent  is 
Agrostis  canina  L.  The  seed  of  this  is  distinguished  by 
the  absence  of  a  palea  and  the  presence  of  an  awn  on  the 
lemma.  (See  U.  S.  Dept.  Agric.  Bull.  692.  The  Agri- 
cultural species  of  Bent  Grasses.) 

RYE   GRASSES 

The  two  rye  grasses  may  be  considered  together  as 
they  resemble  each  other  closely,  both  botanically  and 
agriculturally.  English  rye  grass  appears  to  be  the  first 
meadow  or  pasture  grass  brought  into  cultivation. 
Previous  to  this  time,  the  latter  part  of  the  iyth  century, 
only  wild  meadows  and  pastures  were  known,  these  re- 
newing and  maintaining  themselves  spontaneously. 
Grasses  were  not  sown,  or  if  they  sometimes  were,  it  was 
a  mixture  gathered  from  the  wild  grasses.  English  rye 
grass  is  the  first  grass  of  which  we  have  a  record  showing 
that  it  was  cultivated  as  a  distinct  species,  the  seed  being 
gathered  and  sown.  The  rye  grasses,  English  and 
Italian,  occupy  a  prominent  place  in  European  agricul- 
ture, having  an  importance  far  beyond  that  attained  in 
this  country.  This  difference  is  to  be  accounted  for 
partly  by  the  difference  in  climate  and  partly  by  the 
relatively  higher  cost  and  poorer  quality  of  the  seed  in 
this  country.  Where  timothy  thrives,  it  cannot  be  dis- 
placed except  by  a  grass  distinctly  better  in  some  way. 


96  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

The  rye  grasses  are  more  palatable  than  timothy  or  than 
almost  any  of  our  cultivated  grasses,  but  the  yield  is 
not  quite  so  good,  and,  at  present,  the  seed  is  inferior  in 
quality  and  higher  in  price:  Our  seed  comes  chiefly 
from  Scotland  and  Ireland,  and  probably  is  not  the  best. 
The  demand  here  has  not  been  sufficient  to  induce  the 
production  of  home  grown  seed. 

The  rye  grasses  are  of  considerable  importance  in  the 
humid  region  of  the  Pacific  Northwest  where  the  climatic 
conditions  are  more  nearly  like  those  of  Europe.  They 
are  used  to  a  limited  extent  in  the  South  for  winter  forage. 
Another  use  to  which  they  are  well  adapted  is  that  for 
lawns  or  public  grounds  and  parks  where  a  quick  growth 
is  required  to  cover  the  new  soil.  Rye  grass  is  much 
used  also  as  an  ingredient  in  mixtures  for  lawns  around 
residences.  It  gives  a  quick  covering  but  is  rather  too 
coarse  for  use  alone.  As  a  lawn  grass  it  is  objectionable 
because  it  has  no  rootstocks  nor  stolons  and  hence  does 
not  form  a  compact  sod;  in  a  mixture,  the  bunches  are 
large  and  the  color  different  from  other  species,  hence 
there  is  a  lack  of  uniformity. 

There  are  two  kinds  of  rye  grass  in  use,  perennial  and 
Italian,  differing  slightly  botanically  and  agriculturally. 
Both  kinds  are  short-lived  perennials,  Italian  rye  grass 
being  practically  an  annual,  and  should  be  so  treated 
agriculturally. 

Over  most  of  the  region  where  the  rye  grasses  are  used, 
they  are  sown  in  the  fall.  In  the  South  a  good  growth  of 
winter  pasture  results.  The  seed  weighs  about  20  pounds 
to  the  bushel  and  should  be  sown  at  the  rate  of  2  to  3 
bushels  per  acre,  or  at  a  proportional  rate,  if  used  in  a 
mixture. 


GRASSES   OF   MINOR   IMPORTANCE 


97 


Description. — English  rye  grass  is 
a  short-lived  perennial  tufted  glossy 
dark-green  grass,  with  flowering  stems 
i  or  2  feet  tall,  narrow  flat  blades 
usually  less  than  1/6  inch  wide,  and  a 
long  flat  narrow  flower  head,  consist- 
ing of  many  flat  several- flowered 
spikelets  arranged  in  2  rows  along  a 
main  axis,  the  whole  head  as  much  as 
a  foot  long.  The  spikelets  are  1/3  to 
1/2  inch  long  and  are  placed  edge- 
wise on  the  axis,  alternating  on  oppo- 
site sides.  Only  the  outer  glume  is 
present  on  the  lateral  spikelets.  On 
the  terminal  spikelet  both  glumes  are 
present.  The  leaves  of  rye  grass 
have  one  peculiarity  which  distin- 
guishes it  even  when  not  in  flower. 
At  the  base  of  the  blade  or  the  sum- 
mit of  the  sheath  are  two  little  claw- 
like  appendages,  one  on  each  side. 
These  appendages  or  auricles  are 
formed  also  on  rye,  wheat,  and  barley 
but  on  none  of  the  cultivated  meadow 
grasses  except  the  rye  grasses  and 
meadow  fescue. 

Italian  rye  grass  is  distinguished 
from  English  rye  grass  chiefly  by  the 
presence  of  awns  on  the  florets  of 
the  spikelets,  these  awns  being  as 
long  as  the  florets  or  longer.  In  Eng- 


13.    Italian    Rye 
Grass. 


98  A   MANUAL   OF    FARM    GRASSES 

lish  rye  grass  the  florets  are  without  awns  or  the  awns 
are  very  short. 

Common  Names. — English  rye  grass  is  also  known 
as  perennial  rye  grass. 

On  the  Pacific  Coast,  Italian  rye  grass  is  often  known 
as  Australian  rye  grass,  as  the  seed  was  imported  from 
Australia. 

The  rye  grasses  are  sometimes  known  as  ray  grasses. 
The  name  rye  grass  is  a  misnomer  as  the  species  are  not 
closely  related  to  rye  botanically,  nor 
do  they  resemble  rye,  except  possibly 
in  their  early  growth.  In  England 
the  name  darnel  is  used  for  English 
rye  grass. 

Botanical    Names.  —  English    rye 
grass  is  Lolium  perenne  L.     Lolium  is 
14.  Perennial      an  old  Latin  name  that  was  taken  up 

Rye    Grass.     The      ^    Linnaeus  and  applied  to  this  grass, 
spikelets      without 

awns  or  bristles  The  sPecinc  name  means  perennial,  a 

name  used  by  Linnaeus  to  distinguish 
this  grass  from  an  annual  species  described  at  the  same 
time. 

Italian  rye  grass  is  Lolium  multiflorum  Lam.  This 
species  was  distinguished  by  Lamarck  nearly  half  a 
century  after  the  preceding  species  was  named.  The 
specific  name,  many-flowered,  refers  to  the  number  of 
florets  in  the  spikelet.  Italian  rye  grass  has  also  been 
known  as  L.  italicum  A.  Br.  Some  botanists  consider 
the  two  forms  to  be  but  varieties  of  a  single  species.  The 
name  then  would  be  L.  perenne  var.  multiflontm  Parn. 
or  L.  perenne  var.  italicum  Parn. 


GRASSES  OF  MINOR   IMPORTANCE  99 

TALL   OAT  GRASS 

Tall  oat  grass  is  used  in  Europe  as  a  constituent  of 
meadows  and  pastures  but  in  this  country  it  is  used  to  a 
very  limited  extent.  It  is  adapted  to  the  timothy  region 
and  is  used  in  mixtures  for  meadows.  Its  chief  draw- 
back is  the  high  cost  of  the  seed  due  chiefly  to  its  poor 
seed  habits.  The  seed  does  not  all  ripen  at  once  and 
shatters  readily  so  that  only  a  small  portion  can  be 
gathered  at  any  one  time.  Furthermore,  the  forage 
from  this  grass  is  not  very  palatable  to  stock,  at  least 
not  until  they  have  become  accustomed  to  it.  Tall  oat 
grass  is  not  likely  to  compete  with  timothy  in  this 
country,  but  will  be  increasingly  used  in  mixtures. 

Tall  oat  grass  is  a  native  of  Europe  and  is  found  in  this 
country  occasionally  in  waste  places  and  along  roadsides 
in  the  humid  region. 

Description. — A  tall  erect  perennial,  3  to  4  feet  high, 
with  smooth  sheaths,  flat  narrow  blades  not  over  1/4  inch 
wide,  rough  on  both  surfaces,  and  a  long  narrow  rather 
loose,  pale  or  purplish,  shining  panicle,  6  to  10  inches 
long,  the  short  branches  in  clusters.  Spikelets  2-flow- 
ered,  about  1/3  inch  long,  the  first  glume  1/2  as  long,  the 
second  glume  nearly  as  long  as  the  spikelet,  the  first  floret 
stamina te,  bearing  a  bent  awn  from  the  back  twice  as 
long  as  the  lemma,  the  second  floret  fertile,  awnless. 

A  variety  of  this,  called  bulbous  oat  grass  is  found  occa- 
sionally as  a  weed  in  Virginia  and  North  Carolina  where 
it  has  recently  been  introduced  from  Europe.  This  has  a 
series  of  beadlike  joints  at  the  base  of  the  stems. 

Common  and  Botanical  Names. — Tall  oat  is  so  named 
because  of  a  fancied  resemblance  to  oats.  It  is  also 


A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


15.  Tall  Oat  Crass.  A 
head  or  panicle  in  flower. 
At  maturity  the  panicle  con- 
tracts. 


called  tall  meadow  oats,  or  tall 
meadow  oat  grass.  Another 
name  occasionally  used  is  Ran- 
dall grass. 

The  botanical  name  is  Ar- 
rhenatherumelatius(L.)  Beauv. 
The  generic  name  is  derived 
from  two  Greek  words  which 
mean  masculine  and  awn,  re- 
ferring to  the  awned  staminate 
floret.  The  specific  name 
means  taller.  Other  names  oc- 
casionally seen  in  seed  cata- 
logues are  Arrhenatherum  ave- 
naceum  and  Avena  elatior. 
The  variety  with  bulbs  is  Ar- 
rhenatherum elati us  var.  bulbo- 
sum  (Presl)  Koch. 

CANADA   BLUEGRASS 

Canada  bluegrass  is  used  for 
pasture  on  sandy  or  sterile  soil 
in  the  timothy  area.  On  good 
limestone  soil  suited  to  the 
growth  of  Kentucky  bluegrass, 
Canada  bluegrass  cannot  com- 
pete with  the  former.  Canada 
bluegrass  is  sometimes  used  for 
lawns  as  it  forms  a  firm  sod, 
but,  except  on  •  sandy  soil,  is 
not  so  satisfactory  as  Ken- 


GRASSES   OF   MINOR    IMPORTANCE 


101 


tucky  bluegrass.     It  may  be  used  for  hay,  producing 

a  good  quality  but  a  small  yield.     On 

the  whole,  Canada  bluegrass  is  of  no 

importance  except  under   conditions 

not    suited    to    Kentucky    bluegrass. 

The  seed    is  nearly  all   produced    in 

the  southeastern  part  of  the  province 

of  Ontario  west  of  Niagara  Falls. 

Description. — The  plants  produce 
numerous  tough  creeping  rootstccks 
which  form  a  firm  sod.  The  stems 
are  not  tufted  but  arise  from  ther  oot- 
stocks  singly.  Stems  usually  about 
a  foot  high,  distinctly  flattened, 
the  blades  rather  short  and  upright. 
Panicle  smaller  and  narrower  than 
that  of  Kentucky  bluegrass.  The 
florets  (the  seed  of  commerce)  resem- 
ble those  of  that  species  and  are  used 
to  adulterate  its  seed.  The  color  of 
the  plants  of  Canada  bluegrass  is 
distinctly  bluish  green  as  distinguished 
from  the  dark  green  of  Kentucky 
bluegrass. 

Botanical  and  Common  Names. — The  botanical  name 
is  Poa  compressa  L.  It  belongs  to  the  bluegrass  genus 
as  is  indicated  by  the  first  part  of  the  name.  The  specific 
name  compressa  (compressed)  refers  to  the  flat  stem. 

The  recognized  common  name  is  Canada  bluegrass  or 
the  variant  Canadian  bluegrass.  Other  names  are  Eng- 


16.  Canada  Blue- 
grass.  A  fl  o  w  e  r 
head  or  panicle  and 
a  single  leaf. 


102 


A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


lish  bluegrass,  wire-grass  and  flat-stem.  The  last  name 
is  much  used  in  the  mountains  of  West  Virginia.  The 
term  wire-grass  is  not  distinctive  as  it 
is  used  for  several  other  species. 

Canada  bluegrass  is  probably  not 
a  native  of  North  America  though  it 
is  now  common  in  grassland,  along 
roadsides,  and  in  waste  places 
throughout  the  Northern  States  and 
southern  Canada.  It  is  common  in 
the  cooler  parts  of  Europe. 

SWEET  VERNAL  GRASS 

Sweet  vernal  grass  is  useless  as  a 
forage  grass  but  is  sometimes  in- 
cluded in  meadow  mixtures  to  give 
a  pleasant  odor  to  the  hay.  It  con- 
tains cumarin,  a  constituent  found 
also  in  vanilla  grass,  which  is  also  fra- 
grant, especially  when  the  grass  is 
dried.  Sweet  vernal  is  an  erect  pe- 
rennial, I  or  2  feet  high,  with  thin 
flat  blades  I  to  3  inches  long,  and  a 
dense  spikelike  bronze-green  panicle 
i  to  3  inches  long,  narrowed  above 
and  below,  the  short  branches  spread- 
ing in  flower. 

The  spikelets  are  8  to  10  mm.  long,  lanceolate,  acum- 
inate; glumes  sparsely  pilose,  the  first  about  half  as  long 
as  the  second;  fertile  lemma  smooth  and  shining,  much 
shorter  than  the  glumes;  standing  on  either  side  of  the 


17.  Sweet  Vernal 
Grass.  A  single 
head  or  spike  in 
flower.  After  flow- 
ering, the  head 
closes  up  and  be- 
comes more  dense. 


GRASSES   OF   MINOR   IMPORTANCE 


103 


fertile  lemma  are  two  sterile  lem- 
mas about  twice  as  long,  one 
being  short-awned,  the  other 
bearing  a  long  twisted  and  bent 
awn  from  near  its  base. 

The  botanical  name  is  Anthox- 
anthum  odoratum  L.  Sweet  ver- 
nal is  a  native  of  Europe  and  is 
found  growing  as  an  escape  from 
cultivation  in  the  Eastern  States. 
The  generic  name  means  yellow 
flower;  the  specific  name  refers 
to  the  odor. 

VELVET   GRASS 

Velvet  grass  is  occasionally 
used  for  meadows  in  the  humid 
region  but  has  little  value  except 
on  sterile  or  sandy  soil.  The  hay 
is  not  relished  by  stock  until 
they  acquire  a  taste  for  it.  On 
fertile  soil  it  cannot  compete 
with  more  valuable  grasses,  but 
on  sandy  soil  it  gives  better  re- 
turns than  most  other  meadow 
grasses.  The  only  part  of  the 
country  where  it  becomes  of  im- 
portance is  on  the  sandy  land 
along  the  Columbia  River  in  Ore- 
gon and  Washington,  and  a  few 
other  places  from  Northern  Cali- 


1 8.  Velvet  Grass.  Ahead 
or  dense  panicle.  After 
flowering,  head  closes  up. 


104  A  MANUAL   OF  FARM   GRASSES 

fornia  to  British  Columbia.  In  this  region  it  is  a  weed 
and  at  times  becomes  a  pest.  Velvet  grass  has  been  long 
known  in  Europe  where  it  is  used  in  mix- 
tures. 

Velvet  grass  is  an  erect  perennial,  I   to  3 
feet  high,  grayish  velvety  all  over,  with 
flat  blades,  2  to  4  inches  long,  and  an 
oblong  condensed  panicle,  2  to  4  inches 
long,  open  at  flowering  but  contracted 
and  almost  spike-like  at  other 
times.     The    panicle    is    soft 
and  pale  or  purplish  in  color. 
The  spikelets  are  about  1/5 
inch    long,    with    pubescent 
glumes  longer  than  the  2  flor- 
ets, the  upper  of  which  bears 
on  the  back   a  hooked  awn. 
Velvet  grass  is    sometimes   incor- 
rectly called  mesquite.     In  England  it 
has  other  names,  such  as  meadow  soft  grass 
and  Yorkshire  fog,  little  used  in  this  country. 
The  botanical  name  is  Notholcus  lanatus  (L.) 
Nash.  It  has  also  been  called  Holcus  lanatus  L. 

ST.  AUGUSTINE   GRASS 
St.  Augustine   grass   is   much   used  as   a 

lawn    grass    in   alluvial    or 
19.  St.  Augustine  Grass.  The 

upper  part  of  a  plant   showing     mucky  soil    near  the    coast 

two  seed  heads  or  spikes.  from     North     Carolina    to 

Florida   and  Louisiana.     It 

is  a  creeping  perennial  with    flat  stems,  rather  short, 


GRASSES  OF   MINOR   IMPORTANCE  105 

abruptly  pointed  leaves  and  a  flat  spike  in  which  the 
spikelets  are  imbedded.  The  flower  stalks  are  usually 
only  a  few  inches  to  a  foot  high.  The  foliage  somewhat 
resembles  that  of  carpet  grass;  To  establish  a  lawn, 
the  cuttings  of  the  runners  are  set  out.  St.  Augustine 
grass  is  a  native  of  the  Coast  region  of  the  warmer  parts 
of  America.  The  botanical  name  is  Stenotaphrum  secun- 
datum  (Walt.)  Kuntze. 

CARPET   GRASS 

Carpet  grass  is  used  for  pasture  in  the  alluvial  bottom- 
lands of  the  Southern  States  especially  near  the  coast 
from  Georgia  and  Florida  to  Louisiana.  On  dry  sandy 
land  or  on  the  drier  uplands  it  does  not  compete  with 
Bermuda  grass  but  attains  its  maximum  growth  on  moist 
mucky  or  sandy  soil  along  the  Gulf  Coast. 

Carpet  grass  is  a  creeping  perennial  forming  long 
runners  which  throw  up  flowering  stems  6  to  20  inches 
high.  The  blades  are  comparatively  short,  the  margins 
parallel,  the  apex  abruptly  pointed.  The  stems  and 
sheaths  are  flattened.  The  inflorescence  consists  of  3  or  4 
slender  spikes  clustered  at  the  summit  of  the  stems. 

The  species  is  a  native  of  tropical  America  and  is 
abundant  from  'Brazil,  through  the  West  Indies  to  the 
Southern  United  States.  It  withstands  grazing  and 
trampling  and  tends  to  occupy  open  moist  alluvial  soil. 
These  qualities  eminently  fit  it  for  a  pasture  grass.  It 
can  be  started  by  planting  cuttings.  These  grow  rapidly 
and  soon  occupy  the  land. 

Carpet  grass  is  much  used  near  the  coast  as  a  lawn 
grass,  for  which  purpose  it  is  well  suited. 


io6 


A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


20.  Carpet  Grass.     The  upper  part  of  a  flower  stem, 
showing  three  spikes. 


GRASSES  t)F   MINOR   IMPORTANCE  1 07 

The  botanical  name  is  Axonopus  compressus  (Swartz) 
Beauv.  It  has  been  called  Paspalum  compressum  Rasp, 
and  Anastrophus  compressus  Schlecht. 

RESCUE  GRASS 

Rescue  grass  is  occasionally  grown  in  the  Southern 
States  for  winter  forage.  It  is  an  erect  annual  grass 
i  to  3  feet  high,  the  panicle  bearing  a  few  spreading 
branches  and  rather  few  large  flat  spikelets  1/2  to  2/3 
inch  long.  The  spikelets  are  several-flowered,  the  lem- 
mas sharp-pointed  and  sometimes  slightly  bristle-pointed 
but  not  awned.  Rescue  grass  is  a  native  of  South 
America.  It  is  also  known  as  Schrader's  brome  grass 
and  Australian  brome  grass.  The  botanical  name  is 
Bromus  unioloides  H.  B.  K. 

GUINEA   GRASS 

Guinea  grass  is  the  most  important  cultivated  forage 
grass  of  tropical  America.  Like  most  tropical  forage 
plants  it  is  cut  and  fed  green.  In  the  United  States  it 
can  be  grown  only  in  southern  Florida  and  southern 
Texas.  It  is  an  erect  perennial,  growing  in  large  dense 
bunches,  the  stems  4  to  8  feet  high,  with  flat  blades  and  a 
large  open  spreading  panicle  i  to  2  feet  long  with  num- 
erous small  green  elliptic  spikelets  about  1/8  inch  long. 
Guinea  grass  is  a  native  of  Africa.  Its  botanical  name  is 
Panicum  maximum  Jacq. 

PARA  GRASS 

Para  grass  is  another  important  tropical  forage  grass 
which  can  be  grown  in  the  United  States  only  in  southern 
Florida  and  southern  Texas.  Para  grass  is  a  perennial 


I08  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


21.  Fescue  Grass.     A  head  or  panicle  and  a  single  spikelet. 


GRASSES  OF  MINOR  IMPORTANCE  109 

with  stout  stems  that  rise  above  the  creeping  base  to  a 
height  of  4  to  8  feet,  bearing  flat  smooth  blades  and  a 
terminal  panicle  4  to  8  inches  long,  consisting  of  several 
short  branches  scattered  along  the  main  axis.  The 
spikelets  are  elliptic,  about  1/8  inch  long,  crowded  on  the 
branches  of  the  panicle.  The  creeping  bases  of  the  stems 
soon  form  a  tangled  mass  which  completely  occupies  the 
soil.  The  nodes  or  joints  of  the  stem  are  densely  velvety. 
Para  grass  is  readily  grown  from  cuttings.  The  pas- 
ture must  be  renewed  occasionally  as  the  soil  becomes  so 
filled  with  the  roots  and  tangled  stems  that  the  forage  is 
greatly  reduced.  Para  grass  does  not  withstand  tramp- 
ling and  is  not  well  suited  to  pasture.  In  tropical 
countries  it  is  used  chiefly  for  soiling.  Para  grass  is 
probably  a  native  of  Africa  but  is  now  cultivated  through- 
out tropical  America  at  low  altitudes.  The  botanical 
name  is  Panicum  barbinode  Trin.  It  has  been  errone- 
ously called  Panicum  molle  Swartz,  a  name  which  belongs 
to  a  different  species.  In  the  Hawaiian  Islands,  Para 
grass  is  usually  known  as  panicum. 

THE   FESCUE   GRASSES 

There  are  several  European  species  of  fescue  grasses 
that  are  used  to  a  limited  extent  in  this  country  in  lawn 
and  pasture  mixtures.  They  are  low  grasses  with  fine 
leaves,  the  flower  stalk  being  6  to  12  inches  high.  Some 
of  the  species  are  much  used  in  Europe,  especially  on 
rocky  or  sterile  soil.  In  this  country  they  are  of  some 
use  on  the  same  kind  of  soil  in  New  England  and  in  other 
parts  of  the  Northeast,  giving  some  pasture  where  other 
species  could  not  obtain  a  foothold.  The  fescue  grasses 


HO  A  MANUAL  OF  FARM    GRASSES 

are  more  widely  used  in  lawn  mixtures  but  in  general 

they  have  no  especial  advantage  over  Rhode  Island  bent, 
except  that  certain  species  give  somewhat 
better  results  in  partly  shaded  areas.  Va- 
rious-leaved fescue  .and  fine-leaved  fescue 
are  often  sown  in  those  parts  of  a  lawn 
that  are  less  exposed  to  the  sun,  as  under 
the  larger  trees. 

The  kinds  of  fescue  grasses  commonly 
sold  by  seedsmen  are  as  follows: 

Sheep's  Fescue. — Growing  in  erect 
bunches,  with  a  tuft  of  firm,  slender, 
rounded  or  needle-like  leaves  at  base,  the 
flower-stems  6  to  12  inches  high.  Pan- 
icle narrow,  2  to  4  inches  long,  spreading 
in  flower  but  contracted  afterward,  the 
spikelets  somewhat  one-sided.  Spikelets 
about  1/4  inch  long,  3  to  6-flowered,  the 
florets  narrowed  into  a  short  bristle.  The 
botanical  name  is  Festuca  ovina  JL. 

Slender  Fescue. — Differs  from  sheep's 
fescue  in  having  longer  and  more  slender 
threadlike,  rather  soft  blades.  Botani- 
cally  this  and  the  next  are  usually  consid- 
ered as  varieties  of  sheep's  fescue,  but  by 
some  are  considered  to  be  distinct  species. 
22.  Sheep's  Festuva  ovina  capniata  (Lam.)  Hack.; 

Fescue.      A 

flower  head  or   festuca  capillata  Lam. 

panicle.  Hard     Fescue. — Differs    from    sheep's 

fescue    in    having    harsher,    firmer    and 

thicker  blades.     Those  of  sheep's  fescue  are  about  1/24 


GRASSES   OF   MINOR    IMPORTANCE  III 

inch  thick,  while  those  of  hard  fescue  are  about  twice 
as  thick,  1/12  inch.  Festuca  ovina  duriuscula  (L.)  Koch. 
Festuca  duriuscula  L. 

Red  Fescue. — This  is  a  distinct  species  with  a  some- 
what creeping  base.  The  leaves  are  less  densely  tufted 
at  the  base  than  in  sheep's  fescue,  and  are  smooth  to  the 
touch.  The  stems  may  grow  to  be  2  or  3  feet  high.  The 
spikelets  are  similar  to  those  of  sheep's  fescue,  but  the 
bristle  on  the  florets  is"  longer,  about  half  as  long  as  the 
floret.  Festuca  rubra  L. 

Various-leaved  Fescue. — A  variety  of  red  fescue  with 
more  slender  softer  leaves.  The  plants  are  more  densely 
tufted.  Often  used  in  shaded  places  on  lawns.  Festuca 
rubra  heterophylla  (Lam.)  Mut.;  Festuca  heterophylla 
Lam. 

RHODES   GRASS 

Rhodes  grass  is  a  native  of  South  Africa  that  has  re- 
cently been  introduced  into  this  country  where  it  has 
been  tested  as  a  forage  grass.  It  promises  to  be  of  some 
value  in  the  warmer  parts  of  the  country  from  Florida 
along  the  Gulf  coast  to  Texas  and  in  the  irrigated  regions 
of  the  Southwest  and  also  in  the  drier  parts  of  the 
Hawaiian  Islands.  Rhodes  grass  is  a  perennial  which 
forms  creeping  stems  that  throw  up  at  intervals  erect 
flowering  stems  2  or  3  feet  high.  The  inflorescence  is 
made  up  of  several  slender  one-sided  spikes  aggregated 
at  the  summit  of  the  stem  forming  an  open  tassel.  The 
botanical  name  is  Chloris  Gayana  Kunth.  (See  U.  S. 
Dept.  Agr.  Farmers'  Bulletin  1048.) 


112 


A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


23.  Rhodes  Grass.     A  flower  head,  consisting  of  numerous  spikes. 

NATAL  GRASS 

Natal  grass  has  been  recently  introduced  as  a  meadow 
grass  in  the  sandy  lands  of  Florida  where  it  has  proved 
very  successful.  It  is  the  only  grass  that  has  given 
satisfaction  in  the  pine  barrens  of  central  Florida,  usually 
known  as  high  pine  land,  and  in  the  drier  parts  of  the 
Hawaiian  Islands.  Another  name  for  this  grass  is 
Natal  redtop. 


GRASSES   OF   MINOR   IMPORTANCE  1 13 

Natal  grass  is  an  erect  perennial,  2 
or  3  feet  high  or  sometimes  taller.     The 
inflorescence  is  a  silky,  pale  or  dark 
pink,  rather  congested  panicle  4  to 
8  inches    long.     It  is   a  native   of 
South  Africa.     The  botan- 
ical   name    is    Tricholaena 
rosea  Nees. 

Several  cuttings  of  nu- 
tritious hay  can    be    pro- 
cured  each  year.     It  can 
be  grown  from  the  seed  or 
by  setting  out  divisions  of 
the  crown  or  root.     Natal        jv 
grass  is  tender  and  cannot 
be  grown  north  of  Florida 
or    the    vicinity    of-  the    Gulf 
Coast.    It  cannot  compete  with 
other  grasses  on   rich  alluvial 
soil  but  is  well  adapted  to  rather 
dry  sandy  soil. 

SLENDER  WHEAT  GRASS 

This  is  a  native  species  found  grow- 
ing in  the  western  part  of  the  United 
States  from  Colorado  to  California  and 
northward.  It  is  a  bunch  grass  with 
erect  stems  2  to  4  feet  tall.  The  struc- 
ture of  the  seed  head  is  the  same  as 
that  of  wheat,  but  the  spikelets  are 

q^  .rno/g  slender,   the  glumes     24.  Natal  Grass. 


114  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

rounded  rather  than  keeled,  the  florets  beardless  or 
with  short  bristles.  This  species  has  been  introduced 
into  cultivation  in  the  northern  part  of  the  Great  Plains 
and  the  seed  is  offered  for  sale  by  seedsmen  of  that 
region.  It  is  somewhat  drouth  resistant  and  produces 
a  nutritious  and  palatable  forage.  The  botanical  name 
is  Agropyron  tenerum  Vasey. 

A  FEW  OTHER  GRASSES 

Paspalum  dilatatum. — This  grass  has  been  recom- 
mended as  a  forage  plant  in  the  Southern  States  but  the 
trials  have  not  shown  that  it  has  any  special  value.  It  is 
a  moderately  coarse  perennial,  growing  to  the  height  of 
2  or  3  feet.  The  inflorescence  consists  of  2  to  5  spikelike 
racemes,  sometimes  more,  growing  along  the  upper  part 
of  the  stem.  These  racemes  are  2  to  4  inches  long,  one- 
sided, the  spikelets  being  crowded  on  one  side  of  a  flat 
rachis  or  axis.  The  spikelets  are  flat  on  one  side  and  con- 
vex on  the  other,  ovate,  somewhat  silky  along  the  edges. 

The  name  given  above  (Paspalum  dilatatum  Poir.)  is 
the  botanical  name,  by  which  the  grass  is  generally 
known.  It  is  sometimes  known  as  water  grass  or  water 
paspalum.  It  can  be  used  for  hay  or  pasture  in  the 
Southern  States.  On  the  basis  of  experiments  with  this 
grass  it  cannot  now  be  recommended. 

Paspalum  dilatatum  is  finding  much  favor  in  the 
Hawaiian  Islands  as  a  pasture  grass  in  the  upland  pas- 
tures where  there  is  a  fair  amount  of  moisture.  It  is 
there  call  paspalum. 

Texas  Bluegrass. — Texas  bluegrass  is  of  little  im- 
portance but  has  much  to  recommend  it  and  may  come. 


GRASSES   OF   MINOR   IMPORTANCE 


.25.  Paspalum  dilatatum.     An  inflorescence  or  flower  head 
of  four  spikes. 


Il6  A  MANUAL  OF   FARM   GRASSES 

into  more  common  use  in  the  future.  It  is  a  native  of 
Texas  and  has  been  tried  in  many  places  in  the  south  for 
winter  pasture  and  for  lawns.  It  remains  green  during 
the  winter  in  the  south,  which  is  a  strong  point  in  its 
favor.  The  seed  cannot  be  obtained  upon  the  market 
and  the  plants  must  be  started  by  planting  pieces  of  the 
rootstocks.  The  plants  spread  by  these  and  soon  occupy 
the  ground. 

The  stems  are  erect,  I  or  2  feet  high,  bearing  contracted 
panicles  2  to  4  inches  long.  The  plants  are  dioecious, 
that  is  the  male  and  female  flowers  are  borne  on  different 
plants.  The  seeds  are  very  woolly.  The  botanical 
name  is  Poa  arachnifera  Torr. 

Rough-stalked  Meadow  Grass. — Rough-stalked  mea- 
dow grass  resembles  Kentucky  bluegrass  in  appearance 
but  does  not  produce  creeping  rootstocks.  It  is  usually 
larger  and  more  lax  and  can  be  easily  distinguished  by 
the  rough  sheaths.  This  species  is  occasionally  culti- 
vated in  meadow  or  pasture  mixtures  upon  wet  soil. 

The  botanical  name  is  Poa  trivialis  L.  It  belongs  to 
the  bluegrass  genus.  The  specific  name  means  common 
or  ordinary. 

Rough-stalked  meadow  grass  is  a  native  of  Europe  but 
is  not  infrequent  as  an  introduced  plant  from  New  Eng- 
land to  Louisiana  and  in  the  Pacific  Northwest. 

Fowl  Meadow  Grass. — This  is  a  smooth,  tufted  grass 
without  rootstocks,  the  stems  i  to  4  feet  tall.  The 
panicles  resemble  those  of  Kentucky  bluegrass  but  are 
larger  and  more  open,  being  from  4  to  12  inches  long. 


GRASSES   OF   MINOR   IMPORTANCE  Iiy 

It  is  a  member  of  the  bluegrass  group.  The  spikelets  are 
about  1/6  inch  long,  with  2  to  4  florets.  Like  Kentucky 
bluegrass,  the  3  prominent  nerves  of  the  lemma  are 
silky-pubescent  and  there  is  a  tuft  of  cobwebby  hairs  at 
the  base.  This  grass  is  sometimes  recommended  for 
meadow  mixtures,  especially  for  moist  soil.  It  grows 
commonly  as  an  introduced  species  along  the  northern 
border  of  the  United  States. 

The  botanical  name  of  fowl  meadow  grass  is  Poa 
palustris  L.  meaning  marshy  poa  or  poa  growing  in 
marshes.  Other  Latin  names  that  have  been  applied 
to  this  are  Poa  triflom  Gilib.  and  Poa  serotina  Ehrh. 

Crested  Dog's-tail  Grass. — This  species  is  used  in 
Europe  in  mixtures  for  meadows  and  pastures  but  cannot 
be  recommended  for  use  in  this  country.  It  is  a  slender 
perennial  I  to  2  feet  high  with  dense  terminal  spikelike 
panicles,  the  spikelets  in  clusters,  the  upper  ones  of  each 
cluster  being  fertile,  the  lower  ones  larger  and  sterile, 
with  narrow  lemmas.  The  botanical  name  is  Cynosurus 
cristatus  L. 

Meadow  Foxtail. — Meadow  foxtail  is  a  European 
grass  that  in  this  country  is  occasionally  sown  in  mix- 
tures for  meadows  in  the  northern  humid  region.  Al- 
though a  frequent  ingredient  of  meadows  and  pastures 
in  Europe  it  is  of  no  value  in  this  country.  Meadow  fox- 
tail somewhat  resembles  timothy  in  general  appearance. 
The  spike  or  head  is  dense  and  cylindric  but  is  more 
flexible  and  softer  to  the  touch.  The  spikelets  differ  in 
that  the  glumes  are  unawned  but  the  lemma  bears  a 


Il8  A  MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

slender  awn  or  bristle  from  the  back  below  the  middle. 
The  awns  protrude  beyond  the  spikelets  giving  the  head  a 
silky-bristly  appearance.  The  botanical  name  is  Alope- 
curus  pratensis  L.  The  generic  name  is  from  two  Greek 
words  meaning  fox  and  tail. 

Napier  Grass. — This  is  a  native  of  tropical  Africa 
recently  introduced  in  this  country  for  trial.  It  gives 
promise  as  a  forage  grass  in  Florida  and  west  along  the 
Gulf  Coast  to  Texas  and  also  in  southwestern  Arizona 
and  southern  California.  Napier  grass  is  a  robust  peren- 
nial growing  to  the  height  of  6  to  12  feet,  with  narrow 
spikes  or  heads  4  to  10  inches  long.  It  may  be  propa- 
gated from  the  seed,  or  from  cuttings  of  the  canes,  or 
from  divisions  of  the  crown  or  root-clump.  The  botani- 
cal name  is  Pennisetum  purpureum  Schum.  In  Africa 
it  is  called  elephant  grass. 

Carib  Grass. — Carib  grass  is  a  native  of  the  West 
Indies  that  resembles  Para  grass  in  general  appearance 
but  is  more  erect  in  its  growth  and  hence  more  favorable 
for  a  hay  crop.  It  can  be  used  only  in  the  extreme  south 
in  the  region  suited  to  Para  grass.  The  botanical  name  is 
Eriochloa  subglabra  (Nash)  Hitchc. 


CHAPTER   IX 
ANNUAL  FORAGE   GRASSES 

ON  account  of  their  short  life,  the  annual  grasses  are 
not,  of  course,  suited  to  permanent  meadow  or  pasture. 
Some  of  the  annuals  are  sometimes  used  for  temporary 
pasture,  as  in  the  case  of  rye,  but  their  chief  use  is  for  hay. 
The  hay  of  the  coarse  grasses,  such  as  corn  and  sorghum, 
is  called  fodder.  Another  important  use  for  many  of  the 
annuals  is  in  soiling,  or  cutting  and  feeding  green. 

COMMON   MILLET 

The  term  millet  is  used  for  several  different  kinds  of 
grasses,  but  in  the  United  States,  when  used  without  a 
qualifying  word,  refers  to  common  or  foxtail  millet. 
Other  kinds  of  millet  are  proso  or  broom-corn  millet, 
pearl  millet,  Chinese  millet,  and  Japanese  barnyard 
millet,  each  of  which  is  discussed  under  its  appropriate 
heading.  Among  some  primitive  peoples,  millet  is 
grown  for  the  grain  which  is  used  for  food,  but  in  this 
country  it  is  used  for  forage  only.  Being  an  annual,  it 
furnishes  temporary  meadow  only.  Millet  is  grown  in 
the  eastern  half  of  the  United  States,  but  chiefly  in  the 
region  from  Oklahoma  to  Iowa.  It  is  especially  useful 
as  a  summer  crop  following  grain,  thus  fully  utilizing  the 
land — a  so-called  catch  crop.  As  the  young  plants  are 
tender,  the  seed  cannot  be  sown  early.  The  hay  is 
palatable  and  nutritious  and  is  valuable  for  all  kinds  of 
119 


120  -A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

stock,  but  must  be  fed  to  horses  with  caution  as  it  may 
injure  them  if  they  are  fed  too  exclusively  on  it.  It 
should  not  be  cut  too  late  as  the  bristles  on  the  heads 
become  troublesome.  Hungarian  grass  is  a  variety  of 
millet. 

Varieties  of  Millet. — There  are  several  varieties  of 
millet  cultivated  in  this  country  and  many  more  used 
in  the  Old  World. 

Common  millet,  or  what  is  generally  known  merely  as 
millet,  has  rather  small  heads,  2  to  3  inches  long,  1/4  to 
1/2  inch  thick,  the  bristles  noticeably  longer  than  the 
spikelets  or  seeds,  the  seeds  pale  (straw  color  to  light- 
brown),  the  bristles  greenish  or  purple. 

Hungarian  grass  has  small  dense  heads,  I  to  3  inches 
long,  with  black  or  dark-colored  seeds  and  purple 
bristles. 

German  millet  has  large  lobed  heads,  4  to  12  inches 
long,  and  as  much  as  2  inches  thick,  the  bristles  notice- 
ably longer  than  the  spikelets,  the  seeds  pale,  the  bristles 
greenish  or  purple. 

Golden  Wonder  millet  differs  from  German  millet  in 
having  bristles  shorter  than  the  spikelets  or  scarcely 
exceeding  them. 

A  few  other  varieties  have  been  recently  introduced 
into  this  country  and  are  sparingly  cultivated. 

Turkish  millet  has  red  seed,  large  lobed  heads,  and 
purple  bristles. 

Kursk  or  Siberian  millet  differs  from  the  preceding  in 
having  a  small  dense  head. 

Aino  millet  has  large  lobed  heads,  brown  bristles,  and 
pale  seed. 


ANNUAL   FORAGE    GRASSES 


121 


Description. — An  erect  annual  with 
flat  blades,  erect  or  often  nodding 
spikelike  panicles  or  "heads."  The 
spikelets  are  in  close  clusters  on  the 
short  branches  of  the  panicle,  inter- 
spersed with  rough  green,  yellow, 
brown  or  purple  bristles  which  usu- 
ally exceed  them  in  length.  The 
spikelet  itself  consists  of  three  bracts 
(2  glumes  and  a  steiile  lemma)  inside 
of  which  is  the  fertile  floret  consist- 
ing of  a  hardened  lemma  and  palea. 
At  maturity,  the  ripened  floret  or 
fruit  shells  out  of  the  spikelet  and 
forms  what  is  commonly  called  the 
seed.  This  varies  in  color  in  the 
different  varieties  from  pale  yellow 
to  red  brown  or  nearly  black. 

Botanical  Names. — Chaetochloa  ital- 
ica  (L.)  Scribn.  Millet  was  first  de- 
scribed by  Linnaeus  under  the  genus 
Panicum  as  P.  italicum  L.  Later  this 
and  allied  species  were  separated  as  a 
distinct  genus  under  the  name  Setaria, 
this  species  becoming  S.  italica  Beauv. 
As  the  name  Setaria  had  been  previ- 
ously applied  to  a  genus  of  lichens, 
the  name  of  the  millet  genus  was 
changed  by  Scribner  to  Chattochloa. 
Many  botanists  still  use  the  name  Se- 
taria. Both  names  refer  to  the  bris- 


26.  German  Mil- 
let. A  single  seed 
head. 


122  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM   GRASSES 

ties  around  the  spikelets.Setaria,  from  the  Latin  seta,  a 
bristle,  and  Chaetochloa,  from  the  Greek  chaeta,  a  bris- 
tle, and  chloa,  grass.  The  specific  name 
is  a  geographical  adjective  referring  to 
Italy,  a  country  where  millet  was  much 
grown. 

Foxtail  Grass.  —  Allied  to  the  culti- 
vated millet  are  two  wild  species  that 
have  been  introduced  into  this  country 
and  are  now  common  weeds  in  the  East- 
ern States.  One,  with  a  cylindrical  yel- 
low head,  is  yellow  foxtail;  the  other, 
with  a  slightly  tapering  head,  is  green 
foxtail.  Both  are  called,  in  some  local- 
ities, pigeon  grass.  It  is  sometimes  diffi- 
cult to  distinguish  green  foxtail  from 
depauperate  specimens  of  millet.  If  the 
ripe  head  of  green  foxtail  is  rubbed  be- 
tween the  fingers  to  shatter  the  seed, 

the   spikelets  fall    off  with  the    glumes 
27.  Hungarian  . 

Grass     A  single   surrounding  the  seed.     If  ripe  millet  is 

seed  head.  treated  in  the  same  manner    the    seed 

falls  out  free  from  the  glumes. 

PROSO   MILLET 

Proso  or  proso  millet  is  commonly  grown  in  Europe 
and  western  Asia,  the  seeds  being  used  for  food.  In  this 
country  it  is  grown  to  a  limited  extent  for  forage  and 
sometimes  for  the  seed  which  is  used  for  hogs.  Although 
proso  can  be  grown  successfully  in  many  parts  of  the 
United  States,  it  has  not  been  received  with  much  favor 


ANNUAL   FORAGE   GRASSES 


I23 


28.  Proso  or  Broom-corn  Millet. 


124  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

as  it  cannot  compete  with  forage  crops  already  grown  in 
the  same  regions. 

Description. — Proso  is  an  annual  2  or  3  feet  tall,  with 
bristly  sheaths  and  an  open  finally  heavy  and  drooping 
panicle.  The  spikelets  are  elliptical,  smooth,  pointed, 
the  first  glume  about  half  as  long  as  the  spikelet,  3- 
nerved,  the  second  glume  and  sterile  lemma  equal, 
several-nerved.  The  fertile  lemma  or  fruit  (commonly 
called  the  seed)  is  smooth  and  shining,  oval,  somewhat 
flattened  on  one  side,  yellowish  or  brownish,  about  3  mm. 
long  (1/8  inch). 

Botanical  and  Common  Names. — The  botanical  name 
is  Panicum  miliaceum  L.  Besides  the  name  proso  it  is 
known  in  Europe  as  common  millet.  In  this  country  it 
is  sometimes  called  hog  millet  because  the  grain  is  used 
for  hog  feed,  and  sometimes  broom-corn  millet  because 
the  fruiting  panicle  looks  something  like  a  head  or  panicle 
of  broom-corn. 

JAPANESE   BARNYARD   MILLET 

Japanese  barnyard  millet  is  sometimes  advertised  by 
seedsmen  but  it  has  not  shown  that  it  has  advantages 
over  the  forage  plants  now  in  use.  It  is  grown  in  some 
parts  of  tropical  Asia  and  Africa  for  the  grain  which  is 
used  for  human  food.  In  this  country  it  has  been  recom- 
mended for  hay.  The  species  can  be  grown  at  low  alti- 
tudes throughout  the  United  States  except  in  the  extreme 
North,  but  requires  plenty  of  moisture.  Under  favorable 
conditions  the  yield  is  fairly  heavy.  However,  the  grass 
is  succulent  and  when  cut  dries  slowly  so  that  the  cur- 
ing of  the  hay  is  a  rather  slow  process.  Altogether  it  is  a 


ANNUAL   FORAGE   GRASSES 


125 


grass  that  has  little  to  recommend  it 
for  cultivation  in  this  country.  It  is 
entirely  unsuited  for  growing  in  re- 
gions deficient  in  moisture.  Under  ir- 
rigation, there  are  other  forage  plants 
that  are  more  satisfactory. 

Description. — An  erect  smooth  suc- 
culent annual,  2  to  4  feet  tall,  with 
flat  blades,  and  a  narrow  rather  com- 
pact panicle  or  head  made  up  of  nu- 
merous short  spikes  about  an  inch 
long,  these  ascending  or  appressed. 
Spikelets  crowded,  ovate,  flattish  on 
one  side,  somewhat  pointed  but  not 
awned,  about  3  mm.  (1/8  inch)  long, 
covered  with  short,  stiff  hairs.  First 
glume  1/3  the  length  of  the  spikelet. 
The  spikes  are  somewhat  incurved. 
The  whole  inflorescence  usually  3  or  4 
inches  long. 

Botanical  and  Common  Names.  — 
Echinochloa  crusgalli  edulis  Hitchc. 
It  is  also  known  as  Panicum  frumen- 
taceum  Roxb.  It  is  a  variety  of  Echi- 
nochloa crusgalli,  the  common  barnyard 
grass,  a  weed  of  moist  places  and  cul- 
tivated soil,  which  differs  in  having 
awned  spikelets,  the  awn  often  several 
times  as  long  as  the  spikelet.  Japan- 
ese barnyard  millet  has  been  adver- 
tised by  seedsmen  as  billion  dollar 
grass. 


29.  Japanese  Barn- 
yard Millet.  A 
seed  head. 


126  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

PEARL   MILLET 

Pearl  millet  is  a  tall  coarse  annual  grass, 
with  broad  leaves  and  a  cylindric  spike  or 
seed  head  as  thick  as  one's  thumb  and  about 
a  foot  long.  The  growth  resembles  that  of 
sorghum,  the  stems  being  6  to  10  feet  tall, 
but  the  cylindric  seed  head  is  different  from 
that  of  any  other  grass  in  cultivation.  Pearl 
millet  is  used  to  a  limited  extent  in  the  South- 
ern States,  mostly  for  soiling  but  has  no  ad- 
vantages over  the  sorghums.  The  botanical 
name  is  Pennisetum  glaucum  (L.)  R. .  Br. 
Other  names  are  Pennisetum  americanum  (L.) 
Schum.,  Pennisetum  typhoideum  Rich.,  and 
Penicillaria  spicata  Willd. 

THE  SORGHUMS 

The  term  sorghum  includes  a  number  of 
rather  diverse  forms  all  derived  from  a  single 
botanical  species.  These  forms  have  been 
cultivated  and  selected  for  different  purposes 
and  hence  have  developed  along  different 
lines.  Some  are  cultivated  for  the  sweet  juice, 
from  which  syrup  is  made.  Others  are  culti- 
vated for  forage,  others  for  the  seed.  One 
form  called  broom-corn  is  cultivated  for  the 
long  stiff  branches  of  the  inflorescence.  The 
following  is  a  key  to  the  commoner  kinds  of 
sorghum.* 

30.  Pearl  Millet.  A  seed  head  or  spike,  reduced 
from  natural  size. 

*  Ball,  History  and  Distribution  of  Sorghums  (U. 
S.  Dept.  Agr.  Bur.  PI.  Ind.  Bull.  175.  1910.) 


ANNUAL  FORAGE   GRASSES  127 

Pith  juicy 

Juice  abundant  and  very  sweet Sorgo 

Juice  scanty,  slightly  sweet  to  subacid 

Panicles  cylindric;   peduncles  erect;   spikelets  3  to  4 

mm.  wide;  lemmas  awnless Kafir. 

Panicles  ovate;    peduncles   mostly  inclined,   often 
recurved;    spikelets  4,  5  or  6  mm.  wide,  lemmas 

awned Milo. 

Pith  dry 

Panicle  lax,  25  to  70  cm.  long 

Rachis  less  than  1/5  as  long  as  the  panicle;    panicle 
umbelliform,  the  branches  greatly  elongate 

Broom-corn. 
Rachis  more  than  2/3  as  long  as  the  panicle 

Panicle  conic,  the  branches  strongly  drooping 

Shallu. 

Panicle  oval  or  obovate,  the  branches  spread- 
ing   Kowliang. 

Panicle  compact,  10  to  25  cm.  long 

Spikelets  broadly  obovate,  2\  to  3^  mm.  wide 

Kowliang. 
Spikelets  broadly  obovate,  4!  to  6  mm.  wide 

Glumes  grayish  or  greenish,  not  wrinkled, 
densely  pubescent;  seeds  strongly  flattened 

Durra. 

Glumes  deep  brown  or  black,  transversely 
wrinkled;  thinly  pubescent;  seeds  slightly 
flattened Milo. 

The  sorghums  with  sweet  juice  are  known  as  sugar  or 
saccharine  sorghums,  or  more  recently  as  sorgo.  They 
are  used  for  the  production  of  syrup  and  for  forage. 
Two  well-known  varieties  are  Amber  and  Orange.  In 
the  southern  part  of  the  Great  Plains  region,  sorgo  is 
often  known  as  cane.  For  forage,  sorgo  is  sown  or 
planted  thickly  in  order  to  produce  numerous  slender 
stems  that  can  be  cut  with  a  mowing  machine. 

The  sorghums  with  dry  stems  or  with  somewhat  juicy 


128  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

but  not  sweet  stems  are  known  collectively  as  non- 
saccharine  sorghums.  Kafir,  milo,  and  durra  have 
become  important  in  the  semiarid  regions  of  the  area 
from  Kansas  to  Texas  and  westward  because  of  their 
drouth  resistance,  and  are  used  for  forage  and  grain 
especially  in  the  localities  where  dry  farming  is  practiced. 
A  variety  of  durra  that  has  recently  come  into  promi- 
nence is  called  feterita.  A  variety  of  sorghum  escaped 
from  cultivation  in  Louisiana  and  growing  in  a  semiwild 
state  is  called  chicken  corn. 

Common  Names.— The  common  names  of  the  various 
races  and  varieties  of  sorghum  are  very  numerous.  Some 
of  these  have  been  indicated  in  the  preceding  para- 
graphs. The  general  name  is  sorghum,  and  the  varieties 
together  are  generally  indicated  by  the  plural,  the 
sorghums.  Agriculturists,  especially  in  the  Middle  West, 
distinguish  saccharine  sorghums  with  sweet  juice  from 
the  non-saccharine  sorghums  without  sweet  juice. 
Broom  corn  is  grown  only  for  the  special  purpose  of 
broom-manufacture.  The  saccharine  sorghums  or  sorgo, 
such  as  Orange  and  Amber,  are  grown  for  the  production 
of  syrup  and  for  forage  but  in  this  country  not  for  grain. 
In  the  Middle  West  when  sown  for  forage,  sorgo  is  often 
called  cane.  The  most  important  of  the  non-saccharine 
sorghums  are  Kafir  (or  Kafir  corn)  and  milo  (sometimes 
called  milo  maize).  Crook-necked  varieties  of  milo  and 
durra  are  not  looked  upon  with  favor  because  the  crooks 
interfere  with  harvesting.  Feterita  is  a  variety  of  durra. 
Sudan  grass,  a  variety  distinct  from  any  of  those  men- 
tioned in  the  key  to  the  sorghums,  is  treated  separately 
in  a  following  paragraph.  Tunis  grass  is  another  dis- 


ANNUAL   FORAGE    GRASSES  129 

tinct  variety  allied  to  Sudan  grass.  Both  the  latter  are 
used  for  forage.  Kafir  and  milo  are  used  for  both 
forage  and  grain. 

Botanical  Names. —  Holcus  Sorghum  L.  The  name 
Holcus  has  been  referred  to  under  Johnson  grass.'  The 
specific  name,  Sorghum,  is  of  Italian  origin  and  was  the 
name  by  which  it  was  known  in  Europe  during  the 
Middle  Ages.  Some  botanists  include  this  genus  in  the 
large  genus  Andropogon,  in  this  case,  calling  it  Andro- 
pogon  Sorghum  (L.)  Brot.  Chicken  corn  is  Holcus 
Sorghum  Drummondii  (Nees)  Hitchc.  (Andropogon 
Sorghum  Drummondii  Piper). 

Description. — Stems  stout,  erect,  pithy,  dry  or  juicy, 
sometimes  growing  to  the  height  of  10  feet  or  even  more, 
annual  or  in  warm  countries  persisting,  but  not  produc- 
ing rootstocks;  leaves  broad,  sometimes  as  much  as  2 
inches  or  even  more;  panicle  open  or  condensed,  oval  or 
oblong,  the  stalk  upright  or  bent  in  the  form  of  a  crook. 

Broom  corn  has  an  open  panicle  with  long,  stiff,  naked 
branches. 

Kafir  has  a  dense  oblong  panicle  on  an  erect  stalk, 
and  comparatively  low  stout  stems,  mostly  4  or  5  feet 
tall. 

Milo  has  dense  panicles,  usually  short  or  ovate,  some- 
times on  curved  stalks,  the  stems  usually  taller  than 
those  of  Kafir. 

Sudan  grass  has  slender  stems  and  a  loose  open  panicle. 
This  plant  looks  more  like  a  large  Johnson  grass  but 
differs  in  having  an  annual  root  without  rootstocks. 

Durra  has  compact  panicles  and  strongly  flattened 
seeds. 


130  A   MANUAL  OF  FARM   GRASSES 

SUDAN   GRASS 

Sudan  grass  is  a  form  of  sorghum  differing  from  the 
varieties  described  in  the  paragraph  on  that  subject 
(page  127).  It  is  a  slender-stemmed  form  reaching  a 
height  of  5  to  7  feet  when  grown  thickly  or  to  the  height 
of  9  feet  or  more  when  grown  in  rows  and  cultivated. 
The  stooling  of  the  stems  is  pronounced,  one  seed  pro- 
ducing 50  to  100  stems  when  there  is  plenty  of  room, 
though  under  ordinary  conditions  only  a  few  are  formed. 
In  general  appearance  Sudan  grass  is  more  like  Johnson 
grass  than  the  familiar  varieties  of  sorghum,  but  no 
rootstocks  are  produced.  The  panicle  is  large  and  open. 

Sudan  grass  is  giving  much  promise  in  the  warmer 
portions  of  the  United  States.  Just  how  far  north  it  can 
be  used  to  advantage  has  not  yet  been  definitely  deter- 
mined. It  is  sensitive  to  frost  but  is  a  quick  grower  and 
will  produce  a  crop  during  the  frostless  months,  as  it 
requires  only  60  to  70  days  for  maturity.  The  Maryland 
Agricultural  Experiment  Station  reports  success  with  this 
crop.  (Md.  Agr.  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  194.  1916.)  On  ac- 
count of  its  quick  growth  and  heavy  yield,  it  is  exhausting 
to  the  fertility  of  the  soil.  Its  chief  use  northward  is  as  a 
catch  hay  crop,  as  is  millet.  It  is  valuable  for  hay  and 
for  soiling  and  is  used  in  the  same  way  as  sorgo. 

Sudan  grass  is  best  sown  with  a  grain  drill  at  the  rate 
of  about  15  pounds  (of  clean  seed)  in  the  dry  sections 
or  20  to  25  pounds  in  the  humid  sections.  If  sown 
broadcast  the  amount  required  is  one-half  to  one-third 
more.  The  hay  can  be  cut  when  the  plants  start  to  head 
but  a  better  quality  is  produced  when  the  heads  are  in 


ANNUAL  FORAGE   GRASSES  131 

full  bloom.  The  hay  is  cut  with  a  mower  and  harvested 
in  the  same  manner  as  is  timothy  or  other  heavy  hay  but 
being  succulent  (especially  the  stems)  requires  more  time 
for  curing  than  does  timothy.  Another  method  is  to 
use  a  grain  binder  and  tie  in  small  sheaves,  these  being 
set  up  in  small  shocks  to  dry  in  the  field.  In  the  South 
two  cuttings  can  be  secured. 

The  botanical  name  is  Holcus  Sorghum  Sudanensis 
(Piper)  Hitchc.  It  is  also  known  as  Andropogon 
Sorghum  Sudanensis  Piper.  An  allied  form,  Tunis  grass 
(Holcus  Sorghum  exiguus  (Forsk.)  Hitchc.;  Andropogon 
Sorghum  exiguus  Piper)  has  been  tried  but  seems  to  be 
of  less  value  than  Sudan  grass. 

For  a  full  discussion  of  Sudan  Grass  see  U.  S.  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture  Bulletin  1126. 

TEOSINTE 

Teosinte  is  a  coarse  succulent  grass  of  Mexican  origin, 
used  sparingly  in  the  Southern  States  as  a  soiling  plant. 
It  is  an  annual,  growing  to  the  height  of  4  to  8  feet, 
branching  at  the  base,  producing  many  stalks  with  broad 
leaves.  The  stalks  resemble  those  of  corn  but  are  more 
slender.  At  the  summit  is  a  tassel  similar  to  that  of 
corn  and  in  the  axils  of  several  of  the  leaves  are  small  ears 
with  protruding  silk.  The  ears  consist  of  several  rows 
of  rhomboidal  hard  seedlike  joints,  each  row  surrounded 
by  a  covering  of'  husks.  Under  favorable  conditions 
teosinte  produces  a  large  amount  of  green  forage  but  for  a 
high  yield  requires  considerable  moisture.  It  can  be 
grown  to  advantage  only  along  the  Gulf  Coast.  Being  a 
tender  plant,  it  will  not  withstand  frost. 
10 


132  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

The  botanical  name  of  teosinte  is  Euchlaena  mexicana 

Schrad. 

CORN 

Indian  corn  or  maize  is  primarily  grown  for  the  grain 
but  a  considerable  amount  is  used  for  forage,  either 
directly  as  a  soiling  crop  or  incidentally  as  corn  fodder. 
Throughout  the  corn-growing  region  a  large  amount  of 
green  corn  is  cut  and  fed  to  stock  upon  the  farm.  Usu- 
ally this  is  taken  from  fields  sown  for  grain-production. 
Sometimes  the  seed  is  sown  thickly  and  the  resulting 
growth,  being  thin-stalked,  is  cut  with  a  mower  and  made 
into  hay. 

A  large  amount  of  coarse  forage  is  obtained  from  corn 
(odder  or  corn  stover.  This  is  a  by-product  from  the 
corn  grown  primarily  for  grain.  The  corn  is  cut  when 
it  is  nearing  maturity  but  before  the  leaves  have  lost 
their  nutritive  qualities,  when  the  grain  is  past  the  milk 
and  is  beginning  to  harden.  At  this  stage  is  produced 
the  maximum  of  the  combination  of  grain  and  forage. 
The  cut  stalks  are  placed  in  shocks  where  they  are 
allowed  to  remain  until  cured.  The  corn  is  then  husked 
out  and  the  fodder  stored  for  use  in  winter.  Or  the 
dried  stalks  with  the  ears  are  run  through  a  machine 
which  husks  the  ears  and  shreds  the  fodder. 

Another  important  forage  use  of  corn  is  that  of  silage, 
taking  the  lead  among  plants  used  for  this  purpose. 

The  botanical  name  of  corn  is  Zea  mays  L.  The  origin 
of  corn  is  uncertain  as  it  is  not  now  found  in  the  wild 
state.  It  originated  somewhere  in  America  between 
Mexico  and  Bolivia,  and  was  cultivated  by  the  aborigines 
from  Brazil  to  New  England  before  the  discovery  of 


ANNUAL  FORAGE   GRASSES  133 

America  by  Columbus;   it  is  now  cultivated  throughout 
the  warmer  regions  of  the  world. 

THE   SMALL   GRAINS 

These  grasses  are  ordinarily  grown  only  incidentally 
for  forage,  but  on  the  Pacific  Coast,  because  of  the 
absence  of  forage  grasses  suited  to  the  conditions,  the 
grains  are  extensively  used  for  the  production  of  hay, 
there  known  as  grain  hay.  About  three  million  tons  of 
grain  hay  are  produced  in  the  states  of  California,  Oregon, 
and  Washington.  The  grains  here  used  for  hay  are 
mostly  wheat,  barley,  and  oats,  including  wild  oats. 

Wild  oats  is  a  common  and  often  dominant  constituent 
of  the  growth  upon  fallow  grain  fields.  There  are  two 
species  included  under  the  designation  wild  oats.  The 
commonest  is  Avena  fatua  L.  which  differs  from  the  culti- 
vated oat,  Avena  saliva  L.,  in  having  the  florets  covered 
with  stiff  brownish  hairs,  while  the  florets  of  the  culti- 
vated oat  are  smooth.  There  is  a  smooth  variety  of  this, 
called  A.  fatua  glabrata  Peterm.,  which  can  be  dis- 
tinguished from  the  cultivated  oat  by  the  strong  bent 
awn  and  by  the  easily  disarticulating  florets.  The 
second  species  of  wild  oat  is  Avena  barbata  Brot.  This 
differs  from  the  other  species  mentioned  above  in  having 
more  slender  panicle  branches,  and  in  having  the  teeth 
of  the  lemma  extended  into  slender  awns. 

CHESS  OR   CHEAT 

This  is  a  European  species  of  the  genus  Bromus  which 
has  become  a  troublesome  weed  in  this  country  especially 
in  grain  fields.  It  is  an  erect  annual,  often  stooling  at 


134  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

the  base  like  wheat,  with  smooth  sheaths,  flat  blades, 
an  open  drooping  panicle,  and  smooth,  rather  plump, 
several- flowered  spikelets,  the  florets  with  short  bristles. 
Though  troublesome  when  growing  with  grain  because 
the  seeds  are  difficult  to  separate  from  those  of  wheat,  it 
nevertheless  is  a  nutritious  forage  grass.  The  only 
region  where  it  is  used  for  forage  on  a  commercial  scale 
is  in  the  valley  of  the  Columbia  River  in  Washington 
and  Oregon.  Bromus  secalinus  L.  is  the  botanical  name. 
There  is  a  myth,  still  current  in  some  localities,  that 
wheat,  under  unfavorable  weather  conditions,  turns  to 
chess. 


CHAPTER  X 
NATIVE  FORAGE   GRASSES 

THE  grazing  industry  is  an  important  branch  of  agri- 
culture. As  the  term  is  usually  applied,  it  refers  to  the 
raising  of  stock  upon  large  areas  of  native  pasture. 
Formerly  the  native  pasture  was  chiefly  public  land  com- 
monly known  as  range.  As  time  passes  the  area  of  public 
land  becomes  less  and  that  privately  owned  becomes 
greater,  the  latter  usually  being  fenced.  Furthermore 
the  National  Forests  formerly  open  to  the  public  are 
now  subject  to  grazing  only  under  lease.  It  is  not  the 
purpose  here  to  discuss  policies  or  details  concerning 
grazing  or  the  stock  industry,  but  to  point  out  the 
importance  of  grasses  as  a  basic  element  in  this  industry. 

Native  pasture  or  range  consists  of  a  great  variety  of 
plants.  In  times  of  stress,  stock  may  be  forced  to  feed 
upon  many  kinds  of  vegetation  that  cannot  be  classed 
as  forage  plants,  in  fact  may  eat  any  shrub  or  herb  that 
is  not  actually  inedible  because  of  spines  or  prickles,  or 
because  of  being  too  woody  or  fibrous.  Of  those  plants 
which  are  eaten  from  choice,  the  grasses  are  by  far  the 
most  important.  The  principal  grazing  areas  lie  west 
of  the  looth  meridian.  Formerly  nearly  all  of  the  east- 
ern portion  of  the  Great  Plains  was  devoted  to  stock 
raising  but  a  large  proportion  of  this  region  is  now  de- 
voted to  crop  raising  and  to  stock  raising  as  a  part  of 
general  farming.  The  range  region  of  the  western 


136 


A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


border 


United  States  is  being  steadily  encroached 
upon  by  farms  as  distinguished  from 
ranches. 

The  grazing  lands  of  the  West  may  be 
roughly  divided  into  five  regions, 
plains,  valleys,  deserts,  humid  for- 
ests, and  mountain  meadows. 

PLAINS 
/ 

The  open  treeless  region  known 
as  the  Great  Plains  extends  in  the 
United  States  from  the  Canadian 


31.  Buffalo  Grass.  Showing  a 
staminate  plant  at  left,  with  two 
spikes  of  flowers;  a  pistillate  plant 
at  right,  with  two  clusters  of  seed- 
bearing  flowers.  Seed  is  produced 
only  by  the  second  kind  of  flowers. 


to  Mexico  and  from  "the 
Rocky  Mountains  to 
about  the  96th  meridian. 
A  large  proportion  of 
this  is  still  devoted  to 
grazing.  In  this  region 
grasses  form  so  large  a 
part  of  the  grazing  that 
the  other  plants  may 
be  disregarded.  Over  a 
considerable  portion  of 
Texas  the  meskit  tree 
( Prosopis  j ulifl o  r  a) 
forms  an  important 
source  of  forage,  but  this 
region  probably  should 
be  classified  as  forest 
rather  than  as  plain. 
The  grasses  of  the  plains 


NATIVE  FORAGE  GRASSES 


137 


are  numerous,  but  three 
species,  buffalo  grass, 
grama  grass,  and  curly 
mesquite,  stand  out  as 
being  especially  import- 
ant. These  are  all  pop- 
ularly known  on  the 
plains  as  short  grasses,  to 
distinguish  them  from 
taller  species  of  the  val- 
leys, such  as  bluestem. 
In  all  three  species  the 
foliage  is  short  and  curly, 
forming  a  close  covering 
to  the  soil.  The  flower 
stalks  of  grama  grass  rise 
to  the  height  of  several 
inches. 

Buffalo  grass  (Bulbilis 
dactyloides  (Nutt.)  Raf.; 
Buchlot  dactyl  oi  d  es 
(Nutt.)  Engelm.)  is  a 
light  or  grayish  green 
creeping  grass  that  forms 
a  strong  firm  sod.  The 
flowers  are  of  two  sorts, 
the  male  or  staminate 
being  produced  on  short 

erect  stems  3  to  6  inches 

,    ,,         .  ,  ,  32.    Grama    Grass.     The    upper 

tall,    with  2   or    3    short  part  of  two  flower  stems>  each  bear. 

pale  spikes  or  flags,  not  ing  two  spikes  of  flowers. 


138 


A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 


over 
late 


1/2  inch  long,  near  the  top.  The  female  or  pistil- 
flowers  (these  bearing  the  seed)  are  in  little  green 
clusters  or  heads  hidden  among  the  leaves. 
The  flowers  of  both  sorts  are  inconspicuous 
and  might  not  be  noticed  except  by  a 
close  observer.  Buffalo  grass  extends 
from  the  Dakotas  to  Texas,  and  is  the 
dominant  range  grass  in  Kansas  and 
Nebraska.  The  sod  of  which  the  early 
settlers  built  sod  houses  consisted 
chiefly  of  buffalo  grass. 

Grama  grass  (Bouteloua  gracilis  (H. 
B.  K.)  Lag.;  B.  oligostachya  Torr.)  is 
not  creeping,  either  by  stolons  or 
roots tocks,  but  where  the  grass  is 
abundant,  as  in  the  rich  soil  of  the 
Great  Plains,  the  bunches  are  so  close 
together  that  they  form  a  continuous 
covering.  Upon  hills  and  upon  more 
arid  soil  of  the  Southwest  the  plants 

occur 
usually 
as  iso- 


33.  Curly  Mesquite.  An  old  plant  with  runners  which  produce 
new  plants;  an  old  flower  stem  with  a  seed  head  from  which  the 
spikelets  have  fallen.  At  the  left  is  a  young  seed  head  or  spike. 


NATIVE  FORAGE  GRASSES  139 

lated  bunches.  Grama  grass  resembles  buffalo  grass 
in  its  foliage,  but  may  be  readily  distinguished  by  the 
flower  stalks.  These  rise  to  the  height  of  several  inches 
or  in  favorable  conditions  to  as  much  as  a  foot  and  a 
half.  Towards  the  top  are  I  to  3  spikes  or  flags,  one  at 
the  end,  the  other  I  or  2,  if  present,  at  intervals  of  about 
an  inch  below.  The  flags  are  about  an  inch  long, 
brownish  or  purplish  in  color  and  attached  at  an  angle, 
sometimes  nearly  horizontally.  They  act  as  wind  vanes, 
being  all  blown  to  the  leeward  side.  Grama  grass  is 
found  in  varying  quantities  throughout  the  Great  Plains. 
There  is  a  second  species  of  grama  grass  called  black 
grama  (Bouteloua  hirsuta  Lag.),  to  distinguish  it  from 
the  one  described  above,  called  sometimes  blue  grama. 
Black  grama  closely  resembles  blue  grama  but  is  found 
especially  on  sterile  hills  and  not  usually  on  the  rich 
open  plains.  Black  grama  is  smaller  and  the  flags  are 
more  fuzzy. 

Curly  mesquite  (Hilaria  Belangeri  Steud.)  resembles 
buffalo  grass.  It  forms  runners  by  which  it  spreads  and 
forms  a  close  sod.  The  flower  stalks  are  usually  only  a 
few  inches  high  but  may  be  as  much  as  a  foot  high.  The 
inflorescence  or  flowerhead  is  a  close  -spike  an  inch  or 
two  long.  The  spikelets  are  in  clusters  closely  set  along  a 
central  axis.  The  spike  or  cylindric  flowerhead  is  often 
brownish  or  purplish,  sometimes  almost  black.  Curly 
mesquite  is  the  dominant  grass  on  the  plains  of  Texas. 

VALLEYS 

In  this  category  are  placed  the  open  valleys  in  which 
forest  is  absent  or  confined  to  the  immediate  vicinity  of 


140  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

the  water  courses.  Forested  valleys  are  classified  with 
humid  forests.  The  valleys  support  a  richer  vegetation 
because  of  the  greater  fertility  of  the  soil  and  because  of 
the  greater  water  supply.  They  are  usually  the  first 
part  of  a  region  to  be  occupied  by  habitation  and  are  the 
first  to  be  turned  from  grazing  to  field  crops.  Up  to  the 
present  time,  an  important  part  of  the  grazing  areas  of 
the  arid  and  semiarid  regions  has  been  supplied  by  the 
valleys.  Since  they  contain  the  chief  water  supply,  the 
valleys  were  taken  up  as  claims  and  are  now  mostly 
under  private  ownership,  hence  are  usually  fenced.  In 
so  far  as  these  pastures  contain  the  original  native  vege- 
tation they  may  be  discussed  under  the  subject  of  ranges. 
In  this  discussion  will  be  included  both  pasture  and 
meadow  grasses.  In  the  valleys  the  richer  growth  is 
utilized  for  the  production  of  hay.  The  grasses  of  the 
valleys  are,  in  the  main,  different  from  those  of  the 
uplands.  The  original  vegetation  has  often  been  in- 
creased and  sometimes  considerably  modified  by  irri- 
gation or  flooding.  The  unwonted  water  supply  has 
encouraged  the  growth  of  those  species  that  are  accus- 
tomed to  moist  soil  so  that  sometimes  these  species  have 
become  dominant  over  large  areas.  Unfortunately 
these  moisture-loving  species  may  be  of  inferior  forage 
value.  A  notable  case  of  this  kind  is  the  so-called  wire 
grass  of  the  Rocky  Mountain  region.  This  is  a  species  of 
rush  (Juncus  balticus  L.)  and  not  a  true  grass.  It  is 
now  the  dominant  plant  in  many  parts  of  Wyoming  and 
adjacent  states,  where  it  is  the  custom  to  flood  the  native 
meadows.  The  excessive  water  supply  has  encouraged 
the  growth  of  the  wire  grass  and  has  inhibited  the  growth 


NATIVE    FORAGE    GRASSES 


of  the  more  nutritious  grasses. 
The  hay  made  from  wire  grass 
is  fairly  palatable  but  is  much 
less  nutritious  than  the  origi- 
nal grass-hay  of  these  valleys. 
There  are  many  species  of 
grasses  common  in  the  Missis- 
sippi Valley  that  find  their 
way  up  to  the  valleys  of  the 
plains.  Many  of  these  are  the 
"tall-grasses"  mentioned  pre- 
viously, of  which  big  bluestem 
(Andropogon  furcatus  Muhl.), 
little  bluestem  (Andropogon 
scoparius  Michx.),  Indian  grass 
(Sorghastrum  nutans  (L.)  Nash) 
and  switch  grass  (Panicum  vir- 
gatum  L.)  are  examples.  In 
the  valley  of  the  Arkansas 
River  and  other  valleys  to  the 
southwest,  a  species  of  Sporo- 
bolus  (S.  airoides  Torr.)  is  com- 
mon. Through  this  region  this 
grass  is  known  as  bunch  grass, 
a  name  that  is  applied  to  many 
other  species  in  various  parts 
of  the  country.  The  inflores- 
cence is  open  and  spreading. 
A  related  species  of  Sporobolus 
(S.  Wrightii  Munro)  is  common  ^  Big  B,uestem  A  head 
in  the  valleys  of  southern  Ari-  with  three  spikes  of  flowers. 


142  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

zona  and  New  Mexico,  where  it  is  known  by  the  Mexi- 
can name  of  sacaton.  This  is  a  vigorous  bunch  grass  2 
to  6  feet  high,  erect,  with  long  tough  leaves  and  a  large 
open  oblong  panicle  I  to  2  feet  long.  In  the  valleys  to 
the  north,  especially  in  the  Great  Basin,  a  species  of 
bluegrass  (Poa  nevadensis  Vasey)  is  common.  In  alka- 
line soil  the  dominant  grass  is  likely  to  be  salt  grass 
(Distichlis  spicata  (L.)  Greene).  This  is  a  short  tough 
grass  with  extensively  creeping  stout  wiry  roots tocks, 
short  stiff  distinctly  2-ranked  leaves,  and  a  short  nar- 
row whitish  flower  head.  Salt  grass  is  of  little  value 
for  forage  but  in  the  absence  of  other  grasses  is  grazed 
by  stock.  Large  areas  of  the  grass  are  found  in  the 
Salt  Lake  basin  of  Utah. 

DESERTS 

Under  this  heading  are  included  the  arid  regions  west 
of  the  Great  Plains.  Much  of  the  desert  region  is  more 
arid  than  the  western  part  of  the  Great  Plains,  but  even 
in  cases  where  the  rainfall  is  about  the  same,  the  desert 
differs  from  the  plain  in  the  lack  of  a  continuous  grass 
covering.  The  vegetation  of  the  desert  varies  from  al- 
most total  absence  to  a  covering  of  scattered  shrubs 
and  small  trees.  Alkaline  deserts  may  be  so  strongly 
impregnated  with  salt  or  soda  as  to  be  totally  lacking  in 
vegetation.  These  deserts  are  the  basins  of  former  lakes 
and  may  still  contain  shallow  lakes  at  least  during  the 
wet  season.  Such  deserts  are  colloquially  known  as 
"slick  deserts."  Where  the  soil  is  less  alkaline  there 
may  be  a  growth  of  grease  wood  and  salt  bushes.  The 
later  are  of  value  as  forage  plants.  If  the  soil  is  not 


NATIVE  FORAGE  GRASSES  143 

strongly  alkaline  there  is  always  some  vegetation  even 
though  the  rainfall  is  very  low.  Areas  of  drifting  sand 
and  of  rock  are  devoid  of  vegetation,  one  because  of  the 
instability  of  the  soil,  the  other  because  of  its  absence, 
and  not  because  of  the  absence  of  water.  In  the  regions 
thus  far  mentioned  under  deserts  there  is  no  grazing. 

In  a  general  way  the  remaining  desert  areas  furnish 
some  grazing  at  certain  periods  of  the  year.  Much 
desert  land  is  excluded  from  actual  use  because  there  is 
no  water  supply  for  stock.  Portions  of  such  regions  are 
gradually  being  brought  into  usefulness  by  the  boring 
of  wells  and  the  discovery  of  artesian  water  supply. 

Throughout  the  region  from  the  Sierra  Nevada  Moun- 
tains to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  the  plateau  is  a  desert 
region  at  the  lower  altitudes  (excluding  the  vicinity  of 
the  streams)  with  humid  forests  upon  the  numerous  inter- 
spersed mountain  ranges.  The  snow  fall,  except  in  the 
southern  part  of  the  region,  affords  a  supply  of  water 
for  stock  during  the  winter,  hence  it  is  customary  to 
range  sheep  upon  the  desert  in  winter  and  upon  the 
mountains  in  summer.  The  forage  upon  the  desert  in 
winter  is  chiefly  shrubs  and  coarse  perennials  that  are 
not  grasses. 

In  southern  California,  Arizona,  and  New  Mexico 
annual  plants,  including  several  small  annual  grasses, 
are  important  sources  of  forage  following  the  short  rainy 
season.  In  the  eastern  part  of  this  region  the  rain  comes 
mostly  in  the  summer,  hence  there  is  a  short  period  of 
summer  grazing.  In  the  western  part  the  rains  come  in 
the  winter,  with  a  corresponding  winter  grazing  season. 
There  is  an  intermediate  region  where  the  seasons  over- 


144  A   MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

lap  and  there  may  be  rains  in  both  summer  and  winter, 
followed  by  two  grazing  seasons. 

The  northern  portion  of  the  Great  Basin  is  a  vast 
plateau,  the  dominant  plant  of  which  is  the  sage  brush 
(Artemisia  tridentatd).  This  region  is  often  referred  to 
as  sage  brush  plains.  It  is  scarcely  a  desert  but  is  so 
classified  here  because  it  is  arid  or  semiarid.  It  affords 
many  species  of  grasses  that  furnish  forage  during  the 
spring  and  early  summer.  Chief  among  these  are  certain 
native  species  of  bluegrass  ( Poa  Sandbergii  Vasey,  and 
several  other  species  of  Poa). 

The  foothills  of  the  Pacific  Coast  region  furnish  excel- 
lent forage  after  the  winter  rains  but  become  brown  and 
sere  during  the  summer.  One  of  the  most  important 
native  species  is  California  bluegrass  (Poa  scabrella 
Benth.).  This  region  has  been  invaded  by  a  host  of 
introduced  annuals  which  are  driving  out  the  native 
grasses  and  themselves  furnish  an  inferior  forage.  These 
annuals  are  grazed  during  the  early  growth  before  the 
seeds  are  produced.  The  most  conspicuous  of  these 
intruders  are  several  kinds  of  brome  grass  (species  of 
Bromus)  and  wild  barley  (species  of  Hordeum). 

HUMID  FORESTS 

In  general  the  forests  occupy  the  mountain  ranges, 
except  the  upper  part  of  the  higher  peaks.  The  timber 
line  is  approximately  11,000  feet  altitude  in  the  southern 
mountains  and  about  6,000  feet  at  the  north.  The  lower 
limit  of  the  forest  depends  upon  the  rainfall.  In  the 
eastern  Rocky  Mountains  the  forest  meets  the  plains,  in 
the  Great  Basin  it  meets  the  desert  and  sage  brush  plains. 


NATIVE  FORAGE  GRASSES  145 

In  the  Pacific  Northwest  the  forest  originally  occupied 
most  of  the  region  from  the  Cascade  Mountains  to  the 
coast.  The  dense  humid  forest  furnishes  no  grazing 
grasses  of  importance  but  the  more  open  forest  of  the 
upper  mountains  may  be  carpeted  with  grass.  An  im- 
portant grazing  grass  of  the  mountains  of  eastern  Wash- 
ington and  eastern  Oregon  is  pine  grass  ( Calamagrostis 
rubescens  Buckl.).  This  is  a  fine-leaved  bunch  grass  with 
a  contracted,  oblong,  or  cylindric  flower  head.  An- 
other important  grazing  grass  of  the  northwest  is 
"bunch  grass"  or  mountain  fescue  (Festuca  idahoensis 
Elmer),  a  grass  with  slender  rough  stiff  leaves  in  a 
large  basal  cluster  and  a  small  somewhat  open  few- 
flowered  panicle.  There  are  also  many  species  of  Poa 
or  native  bluegrass. 

The  plateau  of  northern  Arizona  and  adjacent  regions 
is  covered  with  open  forest  and  is  here  classified  as  forest, 
though  it  is  a  semiarid  region.  Another  species  of 
Festuca  (F.  arizonica  Vasey),  a  bunch  grass  resembling 
F.  idahoensis,  but  often  conspicuously  bluish,  is  common 
and  is  an  important  part  of  the  forage. 

MOUNTAIN   MEADOWS 

Where  the  mountains  are  high  enough  to  extend  above 
tree  line,  there  are  areas  of  grass  land  that  furnish  grazing 
during  the  summer  as  the  snow  retreats.  These  moun- 
tain meadows  contain  many  species  of  grasses,  few  of 
which  have  distinctive  common  names.  One  species,  on 
account  of  its  resemblance  to  the  cultivated  timothy,  is 
called  mountain  timothy  (Phleum  alpinum  L.).  Moun- 
tain bunch  grass  (Festuca  viridula  Vasey),  common  in 


146  A  MANUAL  OF  FARM   GRASSES 

mountain  meadows  in  this  region,  is  a  smooth  erect 
perennial  with  acute  but  awnless  florets. 

WILD  HAY 

Large  quantities  of  wild  hay  are  put  up  in  the  West 
for  use  upon  the  farm  or  ranch.  In  the  arid  and  semi- 
arid  regions  this  hay  is  procured  from  the  valley  lands 
that  can  be  irrigated  or  flooded,  or  from  naturally  moist 
land  along  the  water  courses.  The  grasses  that  furnish 
the  hay  are  the  species  mentioned  previously  as  growing 
in  the  valleys.  Commercial  wild  hay  is  produced  in 
large  quantities  in  the  United  States  lying  east  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  and  north  of  the  Cotton  Belt.  By 
commercial  hay  is  meant  that  which  is  sold  upon  the 
market,  as  distinguished  from  that  which  is  consumed 
upon  the  farm  or  ranch.  The  wild  hay  may  be  classified 
as  prairie  hay,  marsh  hay,  and  salt  marsh  hay. 

Prairie  hay  is  produced  from  the  prairie  grasses,  the 
most  important  of  which  are  big  bluestem  (Andropogon 
furcatus),  little  bluestem  (Andropogon  scoparius),  Indian 
grass  (Sorghastrum  nutans),  and  switch  grass  (Panicum 
virgatum).  Prairie  hay  is  very  nutritious  and  is  valued 
highly,  especially  for  livery  horses.  The  amount  of 
prairie  hay  produced  is  constantly  decreasing  as  the 
prairie  is  converted  into  farms.  The  region  now  produc- 
ing prairie  hay  is  the  eastern  portion  of  the  Great  Plains 
from  Arkansas  and  Oklahoma  to  the  Dakotas. 

Much  hay  is  produced  in  the  drier  portion  of  the  Great 
Plains  from  western  wheat  grass  (Agropyron  Smithii),  a 
harsh  erect  bluish  grass  with  creeping  rootstocks  and  a 
slender  wheat-like  head.  It  grows  especially  in  soil  that 


NATIVE  FORAGE  GRASSES  147 

is  slightly  alkaline.  This  grass  is  sometimes  called  blue- 
stem  and  bluejoint  but  should  not  be  confused  with  the 
prairie  bluestem  mentioned  above  (Andropogon  furcatus) , 
nor  with  the  marsh  bluejoint  mentioned  later. 

Marsh  hay  is  produced  from  areas  too  moist  for  field 
crops,  and  too  moist  to  be  classed  as  prairie.  These 
areas  are  moist  meadows  rather  than  marshes.  They 
may  be  fairly  dry  during  a  part  of  the  season  but  some- 
what marshy  during  the  wet  season.  Hay  cannot  be 
cut  from  these  areas  if  the  soil  is  actually  marshy  during 
the  haying  season.  Marsh  hay  is  produced  on  a  com- 
mercial scale  only  in  the  North,  from  the  Dakotas  to 
Wisconsin.  In  some  localities  flat  wooden  shoes  are 
placed  upon  the  horses'  feet  to  enable  them  to  traverse 
the  soft  ground. 

Most  of  the  marsh  hay  is  produced  from  two  species 
of  grass,  marsh  bluejoint  (Calamagrostis  canadensis 
(Michx.)  Beauv.)  and  reed  canary  grass  (Phalaris 
arundinacea  L.). 

Salt  marsh  hay  is  produced  from  saline  marshes  or 
meadows  along  the  Atlantic  Coast  chiefly  from  Maine  to 
New  Jersey.  The  common  marsh  grasses  of  the  coast 
are  used,  consisting  especially  of  the  smaller  cord  grass 
(Spartina  patens  (Ait.)  Muhl.)  and  black  grass,  a  kind 
of  rush  (Juncus  Gerardi  Loisel.)  The  hay  is  mostly  too 
coarse  to  make  good  forage  but  is  used  extensively  for 
packing  and  for  stable  bedding. 

CULTIVATING   NATIVE   GRASSES 

Many  experiments  have  been  tried  to  utilize  the  native 
grasses  as  a  cultivated  crop.  The  only  species  that  has 


148  A  MANUAL   OF   FARM    GRASSES 

been  introduced  into  cultivation  on  a  commercial  scale 
is  slender  wheat  grass  (Agropyron  tenerum»Vasey).  This 
is  an  erect  bunch  grass  growing  throughout  the  \Yest 
especially  in  the  Northwest.  The  seed  head  is  slender 
and  beardless,  resembling  a  very  slender,  drawn-out 
wheat  head. 

The  chief  difficulties  in  the  introduction  of  the  wild 
grasses  are  connected  with  economic  seed  production. 
On  page  53  are  enumerated  some  of  the  reasons  that 
make  timothy  an  important  forage  grass.  In  general 
wild  grasses  do  not  conform  to  the  timothy  standard. 

Big  bluestem  is  an  excellent  forage  grass  and  produces 
hay  of  the  best  quality,  but  efforts  to  introduce  it  into 
cultivation  have  not  succeeded  because  the  seed  is  pro- 
duced in  small  quantity  and  is  not  easily  handled. 

There  is  a  persistent  demand  from  ranchmen  for  a 
grass  which  will  produce  grazing  or  hay  upon  arid  or 
semiarid  land.  This  demand,  unfortunately,  is  not 
likely  to  be  gratified.  For  grazing  purposes  the  native 
grasses  are  usually  producing  all  the  forage  possible  under 
the  prevailing  conditions.  Through  a  long  series  of 
centuries  these  grasses  have  adapted  themselves  to  the 
climatic  conditions,  and  are  producing  a  maximum  for 
those  conditions.  In  seasons  of  maximum  rainfall  they 
yield  abundantly;  in  seasons  of  minimum  rainfall  they 
produce  sparsely,'  merely  maintaining  their  existence. 
The  perennial  grasses,  which  constitute  the  bulk  of  the 
grazing  except  in  certain  desert  regions  (see  page  135), 
maintain  themselves,  but  do  not  spread  or  occupy  new 
soil  except  under  unusually  favorable  conditions.  Under 
natural  conditions  these  grasses  depend  upon  these 


NATIVE  FORAGE  GRASSES  149 

exceptionally  favorable  seasons  to  utilize  their  seed  for 
the  production  of  new  growth.  Plants  introduced  from 
foreign  countries  can  do  no  better.  It  is  an  idle  quest 
to  seek  for  a  grass  that  can  be  sown  by  a  man  on  horse- 
back on  a  depleted  range ,  to  rej  uvenate  it.  The  best  way 
to  rejuvenate  a  worn-out  or  overgrazed  range  is  to  give  it 
a  rest,  taking  off  the  stock  and  giving  the  native  grasses  a 
chance  to  recuperate.  Astonishingly  few  grasses  have 
been  introduced  into  successful  cultivation,  and  these 
nearly  all  in  humid  regions.  First  there  are  the  Euro- 
pean grasses  introduced  in  earlier  times  and  adapted  to 
normal  humid  agricultural  conditions.  These  are  tim- 
othy, redtop,  orchard  grass,  rye  grass,  bluegrass,  the 
various  fescue  grasses  and  several  others  of  minor  im- 
portance. But  as  a 'result  of  recent  experiments  and 
active  search  for  grasses  by  the  United  States  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture  and  the  Experiment  Stations,  only  a 
few  species  have  been  proved  of  value.  These  are  brome 
grass,  and  slender  wheat  grass  to  a  limited  extent,  found 
suited  to  the  northern  part  of  the  Great  Plains,  Sudan 
grass  (and  other  varieties  of  sorghum,  such  as  Kafir  corn 
and  milo,  see  page  126)  for  the  southern  part  of  the  same 
region,  Natal  grass  for  a  limited  area  in  Florida,  and 
possibly  Rhodes  grass  and  Napier  grass  for  the  south- 
west. 

In  general,  considering  the  grasses  of  the  world,  few 
species  meet  the  qualifications,  such  as  favorable  seed 
habits,  for  successful  cultivation.  All  the  grasses  now  in 
cultivation  in  the  United  States  (with  the  single  excep- 
tion of  slender  wheat  grass)  have  been  introduced  from 


150  A  MANUAL  OF   FARM    GRASSES 

other  countries  where  they  were  already  in  successful 
cultivation.*  We  have  not  a  single  case  of  a  grass  from 
another  country  having  been  introduced  into  successful 
cultivation  here,  that  was  not  already  in  use  in  the 
country  from  which  it  came.  Seed  has  been  gathered  all 
over  the  world  from  hundreds  of  wild  species  and  tested 
by  our  Department  of  Agriculture  and  the  Experiment 
Stations,  but  thus  far  none  has  been  proved  to  be  any 
better  adapted  to  our  conditions  than  those  already  in 
use.  The  search  is  being  continued  and  such  species 
may  be  found  but  we  must  not  entertain  exaggerated 
expectations.  Much  more  success  has  resulted  from  a 
study  of  the  species  now  in  cultivation  in  the  various 
countries  of  the  world.  By  testing  these  throughout  our 
country,  additional  species,  or  improved  varieties,  may 
be  found  that  are  adapted  to  certain  conditions  or 
regions  where  now  none  such  are  in  use. 

*  St.  Augustine  grass  and  possibly  carpet  grass  are  native  species 
now  cultivated  but  the  seed  is  not  a  commercial  product,  the  plants 
being  grown  from  cuttings. 


CHAPTER  XI 
OTHER  ECONOMIC   GRASSES 

BESIDES  the  major  use  of  grasses,  the  production  of 
food  and  of  forage,  there  are  several  minor  uses,  the  most 
important  of  which  will  be  considered  under  the  following 
heads:  lawns,  ornamentals,  sandbinders,  fiber  grasses, 
sugar-producing  grasses. 

LAWN  GRASSES 

A  lawn  is  a  small  area  of  grassland  in  the  vicinity  of  a 
residence  or  other  building,  the  grass  forming  a  sod  and 
being  kept  cut  short.  It  is  maintained  for  its  own  beauty 
or  for  its  value  in  the  composition  of  a  pleasing  landscape. 
Larger  areas  or  those  not  in  the  vicinity  of  buildings  are 
usually  more  properly  classed  with  parks.  As  a  rule  a 
lawn  is  composed  primarily  of  grass  but  under  conditions 
not  favorable  to  the  growth  of  grass  other  plants  have 
been  utilized.  These  cases  are  so  few  that  they  need  not 
here  be  considered. 

The  chief  characteristics  of  a  good  lawn  are  a  uniform 
growth  of  grass  of  fine  texture  and  pleasing  color,  forming 
a  firm  even  sod.  To  secure  uniformity  of  texture  and 
color  the  lawn  must  consist  of  a  single  species.  To  form 
a  firm  even  sod  it  is  necessary  that  the  grass  should 
spread  by  means  of  rootstocks  or  stolons.  Fine  bunch 
grasses  such  as  the  fescue  grasses  will  form  a  pleasing 
lawn  if  the  conditions  of  growth  are  ideal  and  the  planting 
and  subsequent  care  are  of  the  best.  But  these  condi- 


152  A  MANUAL   OF   FARM   GRASSES 

tions  are  seldom  entirely  met,  consequently  these  grasses 
are  not  often  used  alone  for  a  lawn. 

The  only  grasses  which  perfectly  meet  the  require- 
ments of  a  lawn  are  Kentucky  bluegrass  and  the  bent 
grasses.  The  conditions  favorable  to  the  growth  of  the 
former  are  prevalent  over  a  much  wider  area,  for  which 
reason  Kentucky  bluegrass  may  be  said  to  be  our  best 
lawn  grass.  Bermuda  meets  all  the  requirements  of  a 
lawn  grass  except  that  of  color.  The  light  green  is  not 
so  pleasing  to  the  eye  as  the  dark  green  of  bluegrass. 
St.  Augustine  and  carpet  grass  are  too  coarse  for  ^an 
ideal  lawn  grass.  Rye  grass  and  the  fescue  grasses  do 
not  form  rootstocks  or  stolons  and  hence  do  not  produce 
a  firm  sod.  The  former,  much  used  for  parks,  is  rather 
coarse  for  a  lawn. 

Mixtures  of  grasses  are  often  recommended  for  lawns. 
The  chief  objection  to  mixtures  is  that  the  texture  and 
color  of  the  lawn  are  not  uniform.  The  different  species 
of  grasses  (and  white  clover)  differ  in  color  and  fineness 
of  foliage.  If  the  species  were  mixed  on  the  lawn  with 
perfect  uniformity,  the  lawn  itself  would  appear  uni- 
form in  texture  and  color.  But  in  practice  this  is  im- 
possible of  accomplishment.  The  different  species 
sooner  or  later  appear  as  spots  or  areas  and  these  destroy 
the  uniformity. 

On  the  other  hand,  mixtures  have  this  important 
advantage,  that  a  more  complete  and  uniform  stand  of 
grass  can  be  obtained.  Each  species  of  the  mixture 
thrives  on  the  soil  best  suited  to  its  growth,  hence  the 
soil  is  likely  to  be  more  completely  covered.  Mixtures 
are  especially  to  be  recommended  for  parks  and  other 


OTHER   ECONOMIC   GRASSES  153 

large  areas.  Conditions  must  govern  the  choice  between 
mixtures  and  single  species.  If  an  ideal  lawn  is  desired 
and  if  it  is  possible  to  provide  ideal  conditions,  then  a 
single  species  should  be  chosen.  The  single  species  to 
be  used  would  depend  upon  the  locality.  It  would  be 
Kentucky  bluegrass  wherever  that  species  can  be  suc- 
cessfully grown.  It  would  be  Rhode  Island  bent  in  the 
North  Atlantic  States,  Bermuda  in  the  South,  St. 
Augustine  or  carpet  grass  along  the  coast  of  the  Southern 
States.  But  if  ideal  conditions  cannot  be  provided, 
either  because  of  the  expense  involved  or  because  of  the 
natural  soil  conditions,  it  is  advisable  to  sow  mixtures 
with  the  hope  that  the  unfavorable  conditions  may  be 
thus  partly  neutralized. 

The  reader  is  referred  to  the  chapter  or  paragraph  on 
each  species  of  grass  for  information  concerning  its  use 
as  a  lawn  grass.  Under  the  chapter  on  bluegrass  will  be 
found  directions  for  making  a  lawn.  In  general  it  may 
be  stated  that  an  ideal  lawn  requires  great  care  in  the 
preparation  of  the  soil.  It  should  be  uniform,  well- 
drained,  and  fertile.  It  should  be  put  in  a  condition  of 
perfect  tilth.  It  often  requires  a  year's  preparation  to 
place  the  soil  in  a  perfect  state  for  the  reception  of  the 
seed.  If  the  soil  is  not  naturally  fertile  it  should  be 
enriched  with  barnyard  manure,  well  rolled,  and  free 
from  noxious  weeds.  An  important  item  also  is  the  use 
of  the  best  grade  of  seed  obtainable  (see  page  37). 

ORNAMENTALS 

Several  species  of  grasses  are  used  for  ornament.  A 
few  species  are  grown  for  the  inflorescence  which  is 


154  A  MANUAL   OF  FARM   GRASSES 

utilized  in  making  dry  bouquets.  The  chief  use,  how- 
ever, is  as  a  border  plant  in  gardens  or  as  clusters  in 
lawns.  In  both  cases  the  attractiveness  depends  more 
on  the  foliage  than  on  the  inflorescence.  Many  of 
these  ornamental  grasses  have  variegated  varieties. 
In  this  chapter  will  be  mentioned  only  the  more  common 
grasses  grown  out  of  doors  in  the  United  States. 

Ribbon  Grass. — Gardener's  garters.  (Phalaris  arun- 
dinacea  L.)  This  is  probably  the  most  commonly 
grown  ornamental  grass.  It  is  one  of  the  old-fashioned 
species  found  especially  in  old  gardens  and  around  old 
homesteads  in  the  northern  and  eastern  states.  Ribbon 
grass  is  a  tufted  perennial  2  or  3  feet  high,  the  leaves 
striped  with  white  and  green.  Horticulturally  it  is 
variety  picta  L. 

Plume  Grass  (Miscanthus  sinensis  Anderss.). — This 
large  tufted  perennial  is  grown  in  the  warmer  portion 
of  the  country,  forming  a  large  basal  cluster  4  to  5  feet 
high.  The  flower  stalk  rises  a  short  distance  above  the 
leaves  and  bears  a  fan-shaped  inflorescence  6  to  12  inches 
long,  consisting  of  numerous  slender  woolly,  whitish  or 
tawny  branches.  There  are  varieties  with  banded  leaves 
and  with  striped  leaves.  Also  known  as  Eulalia 
japonica  Trin. 

Pampas  Grass  (Cortaderia  argentea  (Nees)  Stapf). — 
This  resembles  plume  grass  in  having  a  large  cluster  of 
long  narrow  leaves.  The  flower  stalk  rises  to  a  con- 
siderable distance  above  the  leaves,  being  as  much  as 
12  feet  high,  and  bears  an  oblong  rather  dense  very 
woolly,  white  or  pink  inflorescence  or  "plume."  The 
plumes  are  used  for  interior  decorations,  for  which 


OTHER   ECONOMIC    GRASSES  155 

purpose  they  are  often  artificially  colored.  Pampas 
grass  is  grown  on  a  commercial  scale  in  southern  Cali- 
fornia, the  plumes  being  supplied  to  the  trade.  Also 
known  as  Gynerium  argenteum  Nees. 

Giant  Reed  (Arundo  Donax  L.).— This  very  large  grass 
is  grown  only  in  the  warmer  portions  of  the  United 
States.  The  stems  may  grow  to  the  height  of  10  or  12 
feet  or  even  more.  The  leaves  are  broad  like  those  of 
corn,  being  on  the  main  stems  2  or  3  inches  wide  and  a 
foot  or  two  long.  The  base  is  broad  and  partly  clasping 
and  at  the  juncture  of  the  sheath  and  blade  presents  a 
lighter  colored  zone  of  a  somewhat  cartilaginous  texture. 
The  leaves  are  distributed  rather  evenly  along  the  stem 
in  two  distinct  rows.  The  large  panicle  is  a  plume  a  foot 
or  two  long. 

Fountain  Grass  (Pennisetum  Ruppelii  Steud.). — This 
is  becoming  rather  common  in  the  parks  of  our  large 
cities.  It  is  a  slender  perennial  2  or  3  feet  tall,  with  a 
pink  or  purple  feathery  head,  4  to  8  inches  long.  Foun- 
tain grass  is  used  as  a  border  plant  or  as  a  zone  around 
the  base  of  a  group  of  larger  plants. 

Bamboos. — Bamboos  are  grown  for  ornament  in  the 
parks  and  residential  grounds  in  California  and  in  the 
East  from  Florida  to  Maryland.  With  their  slender 
branches  and  feathery  foliage  they  form  graceful  clusters. 
The  leaves  are  broad  in  proportion  to  their  length  and 
are  narrowed  at  the  base  into  a  short  stalk  or  petiole. 
The  blades  are  usually  not  more  than  3  to  6  inches  long 
and  half  an  inch  wide.  The  species  most  commonly 
cultivated  are  Arundinaria  japonica  Sieb.  &  Zucc.  with 
round  (cylindric)  branchlets,  and  species  of  Phyllo- 


156  A  MANUAL  OF  FARM   GRASSES 

stachys  with  the  branchlets  flattened  on  one  side.  The 
bamboos  above  mentioned  form  masses  with  numerous 
slender  stems  thickly  covering  the  ground  and  rising  to  a 
height  of  6  to  20  feet.  The  common  bamboo  (Bambos 
Bambos  (L.)  Wight;  Bambusa  vulgaris  Wendl.)  is 
grown  in  southern  Florida  and  southern  California. 
The  stems  of  this  grow  to  a  height  of  50  to  80  feet  and 
the  base  of  the  stem  may  be  4  to  6  inches  in  diameter. 

SAND   BINDERS 

The  term  sand  binder  is  applied  particularly  to  plants 
that  are  able  to  hold  the  surface  of  drifting  sand  and  are 
used  on  the  bare  hills  of  sand  known  as  shifting  or 
moving  sand  dunes.  Such  dunes  are  found  in  the  vicinity 
of  sandy  seacoasts  and  great  lakes  and  along  our  larger 
rivers  especially  in  arid  regions. N  Much  has  been  done 
in  Europe  to  reclaim  these  barren  sand  dunes  but  in  this 
country  such  work  has  been  done  on  a  large  scale  only 
on  Cape  Cod,  Massachusetts,  Golden  Gate  Park,  San 
Francisco,  and  in  a  few  minor  localities  along  the  Pacific 
Coast,  the  Columbia  River  in  eastern  Oregon,  and  the 
shore  of  Lake  Michigan.  The  only  grasses  found  satis- 
factory for  this  work  are  the  beach  or  marram  grass 
(Ammophila  arenaria  (L.)  Link)  a  native  of  the  seacoast 
of  Europe  and  A.  breviligulata  Fern,  of  North  America 
from  New  England  to  North  Carolina  and  along  the 
Great  Lakes.  To  protect  an  area  of  drifting  sand, 
pieces  of  beach  grass  with  rootstock  attached  are  planted 
a  foot  or  two  apart.  Full  information  on  the  subject  of 
sand  binders  and  reclaiming  sand  dunes  will  be  found  in 
two  bulletins  from  the  United  States  Department  of 


OTHER   ECONOMIC    GRASSES  157 

Agriculture,  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry,  no.  57,  entitled, 
Methods  Used  for  Controlling  and  Reclaiming  Sand 
Dunes;  and  no.  65,  entitled,  Reclaiming  of  Cape  Cod 
Sand  Dunes. 

FIBER  GRASSES 

Most  of  the  vegetable  fibers  are  obtained  from  such 
plants  as  cotton,  flax,  hemp,  jute,  manila  hemp,  and 
sisal  hemp,  grasses  furnishing  but  little.  The  only  fiber 
obtained  from  grasses  is  esparto  or  alfa,  which  is  pro- 
duced by  two  species  growing  in  Spain  and  North  Africa 
(Lygeum  Spar  turn  L.  and  Stipa  tenacissima  L.).  A 
coarse  fiber  for  making  scrubbing  brushes  is  obtained 
from  the  roots  of  a  Mexican  grass  (Epicampes  macroura 
Benth.).  Inquiries  are  sometimes  made  as  to  why  some 
of  our  native  grasses  are  not  used  as  a  source  of  fiber. 
Many  of  our  grasses  contain  fiber  of  good  quality  but  at 
present  the  cost  of  harvesting  is  so  great  that  they  can- 
not compete  with  the  fibers  now  in  use.  Some  of  them 
may  be  used  for  paper-making  when  available  in  suf- 
ficient quantity  and  when  the  demand  for  paper-making 
material  becomes  imperative.  Crex,  advertised  as  grass 
rugs,  is  produced  from  a  kind  of  sedge  (Carex  species) 
and  not  from  a  grass. 

SUGAR-PRODUCING  GRASSES 

The  sugar  supply  of  the  world  is  produced  chiefly  from 
two  plants,  the  sugar  cane  and  the  sugar  beet.  A  small 
amount  is  produced  from  sorghum.  Sugar  cane  is  a  large 
grass  somewhat  resembling  corn  and  sorghum.  Sugar 
is  made  from  the  juice  of  the  stem.  The  plant  is  grown 
at  low  altitudes  in  all  tropical  countries  where  sufficient 


158  A  MANUAL   OF  FARM   GRASSES 

water  is  available,  either  from  the  rainfall  or  from  irri- 
gation. It  is  propagated  by  planting  pieces  of  the  stem. 
In  the  tropics  the  sugar  cane  flowers  but  produces  only  a 
small  quantity  of  seed.  It  is  from  the  seed  that  new 
varieties  are  originated.  The  flower  head  of  the  sugar 
cane  is  a  huge  feathery  plume.  The  botanical  name  is 
Saccharum  officinarum  L.  Most  of  the  sugar  cane  in  the 
continental  United  States  is  grown  in  Louisiana.  Sugar- 
production  is  a  very  important  industry  in  the  depen- 
dencies of  the  United  States,  the  Hawaiian  Islands,  Porto 
Rico,  and  the  Philippines. 

In  1900  Europe  produced  about  4,000,000  tons  of  beet 
sugar  which  was  one-third  more  than  the  total  world 
production  of  sugar  from  the  cane.  The  production  of 
sugar  in  Louisiana  in  1900  was  132,000  tons  as  compared 
with  650,000  tons  in  Java  and  440,000  tons  in  Cuba,  two 
important  sugar  producing  countries. 

Sugar  is  produced  also  from  saccharine  varieties  of 
sorghum  or  sorgo  (see  page  126),  but  nearly  all  the 
product  is  used  for  syrup.  The  syrup  industry  is 
mainly  confined  in  the  United  States  to  the  region 
from  North  Carolina  to  Kansas. 


CHAPTER  XII 
WEEDY  GRASSES 

TROUBLESOME  grasses  may  be  divided  into  perennials 
and  annuals.  Perennial  grasses  do  not  become  aggres- 
sive weeds  unless  they  possess  running  rootstocks.  By 
means  of  these  vegetative  organs  they  spread  and  main- 
tain themselves.  They  are  difficult  to  eradicate  because 
the  rootstocks  cannot  be  completely  removed  from  the 
soil  except  by  persistence  and  care,  and  any  pieces  allowed 
to  remain  send  up  new  shoots,  these  forming  centers  of 
growth  for  a  new  attack. 

The  three  most  common  and  important  weedy  peren- 
nial roots tock-bearing  grasses  are  Bermuda,  Johnson 
grass,  and  quack  grass.  The  first  two  are  discussed  in 
the  paragraphs  devoted  to  these  as  forage  grasses 
(Bermuda  page  73,  Johnson  grass  "page  86).  Quack  grass 
or  couch  grass  (Agropyron  repens  (L.)  Beauv.)  is  an  Old 
World  species,  now  common  in  the  Northeastern  States. 
It  is  an  erect  grass  2  or  3  feet  high  with  flat  leaves  1/4 
to  1/2  inch  wide  and  a  narrow  head  resembling  a  slender 
head  of  wheat.  The  spikelets  are  more  or  less  bristle- 
pointed  (or  bearded  as  it  would  be  called  in  wheat).  The 
rootstocks  are  slender  and  inclined  to  be  yellowish  as  is 
the  base  of  the  stem.  The  grass  is  a  great  pest  in 
meadows  and  fields,  but  nevertheless  can  be  utilized  for 
forage  when  abundant. 

159 


i6o 


A  MANUAL   OF   FARM   GRASSES 


ERADICATION   OF   QUACK   GRASS 
On  small  patches,  quack  grass  can  be  erad- 
icated by  hand,  great  care  being  taken  to  dig 
out  all  roots  and  rootstocks.     These  should  be 
entirely  removed  from  the  field  because 
if  left  to  lie  upon  the  surface  they  may 
take  root  again  and  become  established. 
Eradication    from    large    patches    or 
badly  infested   fields  depends  on  thor- 
ough   tillage.     The   methods   employed 
are:  dragging  the  roots  to  the  surface 
where  they  will  be  killed  by  exposure  to 
wind  and  sun;  turning  the  plants   un- 
der   completely    and    then    preventing 
the  young  shoots   from  forming  above 
ground.     It  may  be  necessary  to  com- 
bine the  two  methods. 

It  is  essential  first  to  plow  the  infested 
field.  The  plow  should  be  so  adjusted 
that  each  furrow  is  completely  cut  and 
turned,  covering  up  the  plants  and  ex- 
posing the  roots.  In  backfurrowing, 
the  second  furrow  should  completely 
turn  over  the  first  furrow,  that  is,  no 


35.  Quack  Grass.     A  seed  head  or  spike,  and  a  base  showing  the 
vigorous  rootstocks  by  which  the  grass  spreads. 


WEEDY  GRASSES  l6l 

sod  should  be  left  uncut  anywhere.  Afterwards  it  is  well 
to  disk  the  field  both  ways  to  pack  the  soil.  The  plowing 
and  disking  greatly  reduce  the  vitality  of  the  grass  but 
do  not  entirely  destroy  it.  The  complete  destruction 
must  be  done  by  subsequent  tillage  through  one  or  more 
years.  In  order  not  to  lose  the  use  of  the  land  during 
this  time  it  is  best  to  plan  a  rotation  of  crops  suited  to 
the  locality.  Plowing  in  August,  allowing  to  lie  fallow, 
and  plowing  again  in  late  fall,  greatly  facilitates  the 
destruction  the  following  year.  A  smother-crop  like 
buckwheat  or  millet  is  often  efficacious  in  killing  out  the 
pest  the  next  season,  especially  if  there  has  been  har- 
rowing or  other  culture  in  the  spring  before  these  crops 
are  planted.  If  a  cultivated  crop,  such  as  corn  follows 
the  plowing,  careful  tillage  with  some  hand  work  will 
usually  completely  eradicate  quack  grass. 

Nut  grass  ( Cyperus  rotundus)  is  a  sedge  and  not  a  true 
grass.  It  is  a  common  weed  of  lawns  and  fields  in  the 
Cotton  Belt.  Nut  grass  has  3-ranked  leaves  and  propa- 
gates by  corms  or  tubers,  the  so-called  nuts.  These 
corms  are  about  1/2  inch  long,  somewhat  ovoid  or  oblong, 
dark  brown,  and  are  connected  with  the  main  plants  by 
slender  roots tocks.  The  corms  may  be  buried  a  few 
inches  or  even  as  much  as  a  foot.  The  plant  cannot  be 
eradicated  by  cutting  off  the  tops.  It  is  necessary  to 
plow  up  the  ground  and  carefully  remove  all  the  corms, 
or  the  infested  portion  can  be  planted  to  some  shading 
crop,  such  &s  cowpea,  and  the  nut  grass  smothered 
out 


162  A  MANUAL   OF   FARM   GRASSES 

ANNUAL  WEEDS 

The  annual  weedy  grasses  are  numerous  and  often 
troublesome.  In  general,  annual  grasses  germinate  in 
the  spring  and  become  prominent  in  the  summer  and 
autumn.  Some,  especially  in  the  warmer  parts  of  the 
country,  germinate  in  the  fall,  live  over  winter  as  small 
tufts,  and  ripen  their  seed  the  following  spring.  In 
fields  annual  grasses  can  usually  be  kept  in  subjection 
by  the  ordinary  methods  of  cultivation.  In  grain  fields, 
meadows  and  lawns  other  methods  must  be  used.  Clean 
cultivation  the  preceding  year,  and  the  use  of  clean  seed 
will  usually  prevent  the  growth  of  a  damaging  amount  of 
weeds  in  grain  fields.  The  same  is  true  of  meadows  and 
pastures  but  any  lack  of  vigor  in  the  forage  grass,  due 
to  a  poor  stand  or  a  subsequent  dying  out,  invites  the 
encroachment  of  weeds.  A  badly  infested  meadow  or 
pasture  should  be  broken  up  and  reseeded.  It  is  a  waste 
of  time  to  attempt  to  coddle  such  a  field  into  good  condi- 
tion. Weedy  lawns  are  discussed  in  another  place  (page 
65).  The  common  annual  weedy  grasses  are  mentioned 
below. 

Crab  grass  (Syntherisma  sanguinalis  (L.)  Dulac  and 
sometimes  also  5.  ischaemum  (Schreb.)  Nash). — Plants 
spreading,  in  vigorous  specimens  becoming  3  or  4  feet  in 
diameter,  some  of  the  parts  often  showing  a  purplish 
color,  the  sheaths  covered  with  spreading  hairs,  the 
blades  flat,  rather  short,  the  flower  head  consisting  of 
several  slender  spikes,  3  to  6  inches  long,  radiating  from 
the  top  of  the  stem  or  from  near  the  top.  -  The  spreading 
stems  may  produce  roots  from  the  nodes,  the  plant 


WEEDY   GRASSES 


forming  a  clinging  mat.  Crab  grass  is  found  throughout 
the  Southern  States  and  extends  less  abundantly  into 
many  of  the  Northern  States.  It  is  rare  in  the  Western 


36.  Crab  Grass.     The  upper  part  of  a  flower  stem  with  six 
spikes  of  flowers. 

States.  Crab  grass  is  a  good  forage  plant  in  the  South 
and  is  not  infrequently  utilized  for  hay.  The  seed  is 
not  sown  but  volunteer  growth  is  used.  The  less  com- 
mon Syntherisma  ischaemum  is  distinguished  by  its 
smooth  sheaths. 


164  A  MANUAL  OF  FARM   GRASSES 

Brome  grasses  (species  of  Bromus) . — There  are  several 
species  of  brome  grasses  abundantly  introduced  on  the 
Pacific  Coast.  These  germinate  in  the  spring,  cover  the 
foothills  with  green  and  by  midsummer  ripen  their  seed, 
and  present  a  desolate  waste  of  brown.  These  brome 
grasses  are  distinguished  by  the  several-flowered,  usually 
awned  spikelets,  that  at  maturity  easily  break  up  into 
the  separate  bristle-pointed  florets  or  fruits.  Chess  or 
cheat  is  a  kind  of  brome  grass  (see  page  133). 

Barley  grasses  (species  of  Hordeum). — Two  annual 
species  are  common  on  the  Pacific  Coast  under  the  same 
conditions  that  favor  the  brome  grasses.  They  are  low 
bushy-branched  plants  with  close  oblong  strongly 
bearded  heads  an  inch  or  two  long.  One  of  these  species 
(H.  Gussoneanum  Parl.)  has  a  cylindric  head  that  does 
not  break  up  at  maturity.  The  other,  more  common 
and  troublesome  (H.  murimtm  L.),  has  a  flattish  head 
which  breaks  up  at  maturity  into  sharp-pointed  joints. 
The  long  awns  or  bristles  and  the  joints  are  strongly 
roughened,  making  the  fruit  (or  so-called  seeds)  a  great 
nuisance.  They  work  their  way  into  clothing,  into  wool, 
and  still  worse  into  the  noses  and  into  the  lining  of  the 
mouths  of  animals.  This  species  extends  into  the  Great 
Basin  where  it  is  a  troublesome  weed  in  alfalfa  fields. 
It  is  called  foxtail  in  many  parts  of  the  West. 

A  perennial  species  of  Hordeum  (H.  jubatum  L.)  is 
troublesome  in  the  Rocky  Mountain  and  Great  Basin 
regions.  This  is  called  squirrel-tail  grass  and  in  some 
places  foxtail.  The  species  may  be  distinguished  by  the 
feathery  oblong  or  cylindric  head,  turning  white  at 
maturity,  and  the  numerous  very  slender  wide-spreading 


WEEDY   GRASSES  165 

awns  or  bristles  an  inch  or  two  long.  These  heads 
break  up  and  behave  in  the  same  manner  as  barley  grass 
described  above.  Squirrel-tail  grass  is  troublesome  in 
alfalfa  fields  and  in  irrigated  meadows.  The  pieces  of 
the  heads  with  the  spreading  beards  are  blown  about 
sometimes  in  great  quantities.  The  species  has  extended 
eastward  and  is  locally  abundant  as  far  east  as  Illinois. 

Two  other  species  of  Hordeum,  one  annual  (H.  pusil- 
lum  Nutt.)  the  other  perennial  (H.  nodosum  L.),  are 
often  abundant  in  open  ground,  but  are  not  serious 
pests.  They  have  small  cylindric  heads  with  short 
upright  bristles.  The  heads  break  up  into  joints. 
These  species  are  usually  only  a  few  inches  to  a  foot  high. 

Foxtail  (species  of  Chaetochloa.  See  page  122). — The 
two  common  species  in  the  Northeastern  States  are  green 
foxtail  (C.  viridis  (L.)  Scribn.),  with  a  green  head 
slightly  narrowed  above,  and  yellow  foxtail  (C.  lutescens 
(Weigel)  Stuntz,  C.  glauca  of  authors)  with  a  somewhat 
long  yellow  head  that  is  not  narrowed  above.  These 
grasses  are  often  abundant  in  neglected  fields  but  are 
easily  eradicated  by  culture  methods.  In  the  South, 
especially  in  Florida,  there  is  a  perennial  species  (C. 
geniculata  (Lam.)  Millsp.  &  Chase)  that  closely  re- 
sembles yellow  foxtail. 

Sandbur  (Cenchrus  pauciflorus  Benth.).  This  well- 
known  annual  grass  is  common  on  sandy  soil  throughout 
the  eastern  half  of  the  United  States.  The  prickly  burs 
with  backwardly  roughened  spines  are  very  trouble- 
some. In  the  South  a  second  species  (C.  echinatus  L.) 
is  common.  The  burs  of  this  are  scarcely  so  hard  as 
those  of  the  other.  Both  species  are  also  known  as  bur 
grass.  The  first  has  been  called  C.  caroliniana. 


166  A  MANUAL  OF  FARM   GRASSES 

Species  of  minor  importance. — Several  species  of 
annual  grasses  are  common  throughout  many  of  the 
Eastern  States  but  do  not  in  general  become  troublesome 
weeds  in  fields.  They  are  especially  found  in  waste 
places,  vacant  lots  in  towns,  along  roadsides,  and  in 
neglected  spots  on  farms.  Usually  they  are  not  very 
difficult  to  eradicate.  Tickle  grass  (Panicum  capillare 
L.),  smooth  panicum  (P.  dichotomiflorum  Michx.),  barn- 
yard grass  (Echinochloa  crusgalli  (L.)  Beauv.),  goose 
grass  (Eleusine  indica  (L.)  Gaertn.),  stink  grass  (Era- 
grostis  cilianensis  (All.)  Link)  are  examples  of  this  group. 

Wild  oats  (Avenafatua  L.). — This  species  is  especially 
abundant  on  the  Pacific  Coast  where  it  frequently  ap- 
pears in  fallow  fields  and  grain  fields  after  harvest.  It  is 
also  found  under  the  conditions  that  favor  the  brome 
grasses.  Wild  oats  closely  resemble  the  cultivated  oat 
but  differs  in  having  a  strong  bent  awn  or  bristle  on  the 
back  of  each  floret  and  in  having  the  florets  covered  with 
bronze  colored  hairs.  This  is  an  excellent  forage  grass 
and  is  extensively  utilized  in  the  production  of  grain 
hay  (see  page  23).  A  second  species,  A.  barbata,  is 
becoming  common  in  many  places. 

WEEDS   UPON  THE   RANGE 

There  are  several  native  species  of  grass  that  might  be 
considered  weeds  upon  the  range  but  only  two  kinds  are 
worth  mentioning  here.  Both  are  pests  at  maturity 
when  the  seed  is  being  scattered.  They  are  perennials. 

Dog -town  grass  (species  of  Aristida,  chiefly  A.  longi- 
seta). —  This  is  common  on  the  Great  Plains.  It  has 
received  the  name  of  dog-town  grass  because  it  is  usually 


WEEDY   GRASSES  l6j 

found  around  the  burrows  of  prairie  dogs.  It  readily 
occupies  any  new  soil  such  as  fire  guard  furrows  and 
roadsides.  Dog-town  grass  is  an  erect  bunch  grass  with 
numerous  short  leaves  at  the  base  and  a  flower  stalk  a 
few  inches  to  a  foot  high,  bearing  rather  few  spikelets. 
The  florets  or  seed  are  tipped  with  three  slender  spreading 
awns  or  bristles.  When  ripe  these  seeds  break  away 
and  are  blown  in  quantities  before  the  wind.  The  point 
(base)  of  the  seed  is  hard  and  sharp,  the  three  hori- 
zontally spreading  bristles  are  I  to  4  inches  long.  The 
wind  blows  these  seeds  point  forwards  and  they  stick  into 
clothing,  and  into  the  coats  of  animals. 

Wild  barley,  wild  rye  (species  of  Sitanion). — This  is  an 
erect  tufted  perennial  usually  about  a  foot  high.  The 
flower  head  is  close  and  bristly,  somewhat  resembling 
barley,  rye,  and  bearded  wheat.  At  maturity  the  oblong 
head  breaks  up  into  joints,  each  joint  bearing  a  sharp 
point  at  base  and  several  spreading  bristles  I  to  3  inches 
long.  Before  breaking  up,  the  head  may  become  de- 
tached from  the  plant  and  blow  about.  The  beards  or 
bristles  are  backwardly  roughened  so  that  the  sections 
penetrate  clothing  and  readily  work  their  way  inward. 
These  seeds  are  troublesome  and  even  dangerous  to  stock 
as  they  work  their  way  into  the  mouths,  nostrils,  and 
eyes  of  grazing  animals.  This  kind  of  wild  barley  is 
found  widely  distributed  west  of  the  looth  meridian. 


INDEX 


Where  several  references  are  given,  principal  entries  are  in  heavy- 
face  type.] 


Agropyron  repens,  159. 

Smithii,  146. 

tenerum,  114,  148. 
Agrostis  alba,  8p. 

var.  vulgaris,  95. 

canina,  95. 

capillaris,  94. 

palustris,  79. 

stolonifera,  95. 

tenuis,  95. 

vulgaris,  95. 
Alfa,  157. 

Alfalfa,  statistics  of,  6,  8. 
Alopecurus  pratensis,  118. 
Ammophila  arenaria,  156. 

breviligulata,  156. 
Anastrophus  compressus,  107. 
Andropogon  furcatus,  141. 

halepensis,  89. 

scoparius,  141. 

Sorghum,  129. 

Drummondii,  129. 
exiguus,  131. 
sudanensis,  131. 
Anthoxanthum  odoratum,  103. 
Arid  region,  15. 
Aristida  longiseta,  166,  167. 
Arrhenatherum  avenaceus,   100. 

elatius,  100. 

var.  bulbosum,  100. 
Artemisia  tridentata,  144. 
Arundinaria  japonica,  155. 
Arundo  Donax,  155. 
Australian  brome  grass,  107. 
A  vena  barbata,  133,  166. 

elatior,  100. 

fatua,  133,  166. 
glabrata,  133. 

sativa,  133. 
Axonopus  compressus,  107. 


Bahama  grass,  75. 
Bamboos,  155,  156. 
Bambos  Bambos,  156. 
Bambusa  vulgaris,  156. 
Barley  grasses  as  weeds,  164. 
wild,     injurious    weeds,     144, 

167. 

Barnyard  grass,  125,  166. 
Beach  grass,  156. 
Bean,  velvet,  13. 
Bent,  carpet,  92. 
seed  of,  93. 
Bent  grass,  92. 

for  lawns,  152,  153. 

seed  of,  93. 

Rhode  Island,  92,  93,  94. 

seed  of,  93. 
velvet,  93,  95. 

Bermuda  grass,  19,  20,  70,  74. 
eradication  of,  73. 
giant,  73,  76. 
lawn,  for,  72,  152,  153. 
pasture,  for,  71. 
planted   from  cuttings,    72, 

73- 

region,  13. 
,  weed,  as,  159. 
Billion-dollar  grass,  125. 
Black  grass,  147. 
Bluegrass,  13. 

botanical  name  of,  70. 
California,  144. 
Canada,  100,  101. 
Canadian,  101. 

English   [Canada]   101,   [mea- 
dow fescue],  85. 
Kentucky,  19,  58,  68. 
description  of,  67. 
lawns,  for,  60,  152,  153. 
pasture,  for,  59. 


169 


170 


A    MANUAL   OF    FARM    GRASSES 


Bluegrass  seed,  40,  66. 

Chaetochloa  italica,  121. 

weed,  as,  67. 

lutescens,  165. 

region  of  Kentucky,  19. 

viridis,  165. 

Texas,  114. 

Cheat,  133,  164. 

Bluejoint,  147. 
marsh,  147. 

Chess,  133,  134,  164. 
Chloris  Gayana,  in. 

Bluestem  [western  wheat  grass], 

Clover,  Japan,  13,  20. 

147. 

red,  13. 

big,  141,  148. 

statistics  of,  6,  8. 

little,  141. 

white,  13. 

Bouteloua  gracilis,  138. 

Cock's-foot,  83. 

hirsuta,  139. 

Cord  grass,  147. 

oligostachya,  138. 

Corn  Belt,  24. 

Brome  grass,  14,  89,  90. 

chicken,  128,  129. 

annual  weeds,  144,  164. 

cut  for  forage,  9. 

Australian,  107. 

for  fodder,  24,  25. 

description  of,  91. 

Indian,  137. 

Hungarian,  91. 

Cortaderia  argentea,  154. 

Schrader's,  107. 

Cotton  Belt,  13. 

seed,  40. 

Couch    grass,    159;    [Bermuda], 

Bromus  inermis,  91. 

75- 

secalinus,  134. 

Cowpea,  9,  13. 

unioloides,  107. 

Crabgrass,  162,  163. 

Broom-corn,  128,  129. 

weed  in  lawn,  65. 

Buchloe  dactyloides,  137. 

Crested  dog's  tail,  117. 

Buffalo  grass,  136,  137,  138. 

Crex,  157. 

Bulbilis  dactyloides,  137. 

Crop  areas,  forage,  12. 

Bunch  grass,  141,  145. 

Curly  mesquite,   137,   138,   139. 

mountain,  145. 

Cynodon  Dactylon,  76. 

Bur  grass,  165. 

Cynosurus  cristatus,  117. 

Cyperus  rotundus,  161. 

Calamagrostis   canadensis,    147. 

rubescens,  145. 

Dactylis  glomerata,  83. 

Canada  field  pea,  9. 

Darnel,  98. 

Canary  grass,  reed,  147. 

Deserts,   forage   plants  of,    142, 

Cane,  14,  127. 

143- 

Capriola  Dactylon,  76. 
var.  maritima,  76. 

Devil  grass,  75. 
Distichlis  spicata,  142. 

Carib  grass,  118. 

Dog-town  grass,  166. 

Carpet  bent,  60,  63,  92,  95. 

Dry  farming,  14. 

seed  of,  93. 

Durra,  128,  129. 

grass,  105,  1  06,  150. 

for  lawn,  152,  153. 

Echinochloa  crusgalli,   125,   166. 

Cenchrus  carolinianus,  165. 

edulis,  125. 

echinatus,  165. 

Eleusine  indica,  166. 

pauciflorus,  165.    " 

Epicampes  macroura,  157. 

Census,  report  of  I3th,  on  grass 

Eragrostis  cilianensis,  166. 

crop,  4. 
Chaetochloa  geniculata,  165. 

Eriochloa  subglabra,  118. 
Esparto,  157. 

glauca,  165. 

Euchlaena  mexicana,  132. 

INDEX 


171 


Eulalia  japonica,  154. 

Grama  grass,  blue,  139. 

Gramineae,  10. 

Fescue  grasses,  109. 

Grass,  Bahama,  75. 

hard,  no. 

barley,  as  weed,  164. 

meadow,  83. 

barnyard,  125,  166. 

description  of,  84. 

beach,  156. 

mountain,  145. 

bent,  92. 

sheep's,  no. 

for  lawn,  152,  153. 

slender,  iro. 

seed  of,  93. 

various-leaved,  in. 

Bermuda,  19,  20,  70,  74. 

Festuca  arizonica,  145. 

as  weed,  159. 

capillata,  no. 

for  lawn,  152,  153.  . 

duriuscula,  in. 

billion-dollar,  125. 

elatior,  85. 

black,  147. 

heterophylla,  ill. 
idahoensis,  145. 

brome,  14,  21,  89,  90. 
annual,  as  weed,   144,  164. 

ovina,  no. 

Australian,   107. 

capillata,  no. 

description  of,  91. 

duriuscula,  in. 

Hungarian,  91. 

pratensis,  85. 

Schrader's,  107. 

var.  elatior,  85. 

seed,  40. 

rubra,  in. 

buffalo,  136,  137,  138. 

heterophylla,  in. 

bunch,  141,  135. 

viridula,  145. 

mountain,  145. 

Feterita,  128. 

bur,  165. 

Fiber  grasses,  157. 

canary,  reed,  147. 

Flat-stem,  102. 

Carib,  118. 

Fodder,  24. 

carpet,  105,  106,  150. 

Forage  crop  areas,  12. 

for  lawn,  152,  153. 

grasses,  10. 

cord,  147. 

annual,  119. 

couch,  159,  [Bermuda!,  75. 

native,  135. 

crab,  162,  163. 

plants,  classification  of,  10. 

weed  in  lawn,  65. 

statistics  of,  4,  5,  6,  7. 

crested  dog's  tail,  117. 

Fountain  grass,  155. 

crop,  statistics  of,  4. 

Fowl  meadow  grass,  116. 

value  of,  4. 

Foxtail  [barley  grass],  164. 

devil,  75. 

grass,  122. 

dog-town,  1  66. 

green,  122,  165. 

family,  10,  28. 

meadow,  117. 

fescue,  109. 

yellow,  122,  165. 

flower,  description  of,  48. 

fountain,  155. 

Gardener's  garters,  154. 
Germinators,  how  made,  41. 

fowl  meadow,  116. 
foxtail,  122. 

Glumes,  49. 

green,  122. 

Golf  courses,  grasses  for,  92. 

yellow,  122. 

Goose  grass,  166. 

goose,  1  66. 

Grains,  small,  133. 

grama,  137,  138,  139. 

Grama  grass,  137,  138,  139. 

black,  139. 

black,  139. 

blue,  139. 

172 


A   MANUAL  OF  FARM   GRASSES 


Grass,  guinea,  107. 

Grass,  St.  Augustine,  104,  150. 

Herd's  28,  (red  top),  77,  79. 

for  lawn,  152,  153. 

how  distinguished  from  other 

St.  Lucie,  73. 

plants  n,  44. 

salt,  142. 

Hungarian,  122. 

statistics  of,  6,  8. 

statistics  of,  6,  8. 

scutch,  75. 

in  rotation,  36. 

seed,  37,  40. 

Indian,  141. 

description  of,  50. 

•    couch,  76. 

determining  purity  of,  38. 

injurious,  167. 

sowing,  32. 

Johnson,  9,  13,  85,  88,  89. 

short,  137. 

description  of,  87. 

squirrel-tail,  164,  165. 

eradication,  86. 

stink,  166. 

weed  as,  159. 

structure  of,  44. 

June,  19. 

Sudan,  14,  128,  129,  130. 

leaf,  description  of,  47. 

sugar  producing,  157. 

marram,  156. 

sweet  vernal,  102. 

meadow  soft,  104. 

switch,  141. 

names,   Latin,  significance  of 

tall  oat,  99,  IOO. 

and  why  used,  28. 

tickle,  166. 

Napier,   118,   149. 

Tunis,  128,  131. 

Natal,  112,  113. 

velvet,  103,  104. 

native,  cultivation  of,  147. 

wheat,  slender,  113,  148,  149. 

nomenclature  of,  27. 

western  146. 

nut,  161. 

wild,  statistics  of,  6,  8.             , 

oat,  bulbous,  99. 
tall,  99,  100. 

wire  [Bermuda],  75;  [Canada 
bluegrass],  102;  [Juncus  bal- 

orchard,  9,  80,  82. 

ticus],  140. 

description  of,  81. 

Grazing  industry,  135. 

seed,  40,  81. 

Guinea  grass,  107. 

pampas,  154. 

Gynerium  argenteum,  155. 

Para,  107,  109. 

pigeon,  122. 

Hay,  coarse,  24. 

pine,  145. 

fresh  water  marsh,  22. 

plume,  154. 

grain,  15,  23,  133. 

quack,  159,  160. 

statistics  of,  6,  8. 

eradication  of,  160. 

legume,  23. 

Randall,  100. 

making,  34. 

ray,  98. 

marsh,  147. 

recently  introduced,  149. 

prairie,  22. 

rescue,  107,  108. 

salt  marsh,  23. 

Rhodes,  in,  112. 

statistics  of,  4,  5,  6,  7. 

ribbon,  154. 

wild,  22,  146. 

rough-stalked  meadow,  116. 

wild  oats  as,  133. 

rye,  95- 
Australian  98. 

Herd's  grass,  28  [redtop]  77,  79. 
Hierba  de  Don  Carlos,  89. 

description  of,  97. 

del  prado,  75. 

English,  95,  96,  97,  98. 
Italian,  95,  96,  97,  98. 

fina,  75. 
Holcus  halepensis,  89. 

sacred,  75. 

lanatus,  104. 

INDEX 


173 


Holcus,  Sorghum,  129. 

Marram  grass,  156. 

Drummondii,  129. 
exiguus,  131. 

Meadow  fescue,  83. 
description  of,  84. 

sudanensis,  131. 

seed,  40. 

Hordeum,  164. 

hay,  26. 

Gussoneanum,  164. 

plants,  16. 

jubatum,  164. 

soft  grass,  104. 

murinum,  164. 

Meadows,  22. 

nodosum,  165. 

care  of,  34. 

pusillum,  165. 

mountain,   forage   grasses  of, 

Humid  Region,  cool,  12. 

145- 

warm,  13. 

Meskit  tree,  136. 

Hungarian  brome  grass,  91. 

Mesquite,  104. 

grass,  122. 

Millet,  9,  14,  25. 

statistics  of,  6,  8. 

Aino,  120. 

broom  corn,  119,  123,  124. 

Indian  couch  grass,  76. 

Chinese,  119. 

grass,  141. 

common,  119,  120,  124. 

German,  120,  121. 

Japan  clover,  13. 

Golden  Wonder,  120. 

Johnson  grass,  9,  13,  85,  88,  89. 

hog,  124. 

description  of,  87. 

Hungarian,  120,  122. 

eradication  of,  86. 

Japanese  barnyard,  119,  124, 

weed,  as,  159. 

I25- 

Juncus  Gerardi,  147. 

Kursk,  120. 

June  grass,  19. 

pearl  119,  126. 

proso,  119,  122,  123,  124. 

Kafir,  14,  128,  129. 

Siberian,  120. 

statistics  of,  6,  8. 

Lawn,  Bermuda  for,  72. 

Turkish,  120. 

bluegrass,  making,  61. 

varieties  of,  120. 

carpet  grass  for,  105. 

Milo,  14,  128,  129. 

grass  for,  92,  151. 

Miscanthus  sinensis,  154. 

grass  mixtures,  152. 

preparation  of,  92. 

Napier,  118,  149. 

St.  Augustine  grass  for,   105. 

Natal,  112,  113. 

weeds,  65. 

Notholcus  lanatus,  104. 

Legumes,  n. 

Nut  grass,  161. 

Leguminosae,  10. 

Lemmas,  49. 

Oat  grass,  bulbous,  99. 

Linnaeus,  29. 

tall,  99,  100. 

Lolium  italicum,  98. 
multiflorum,  98. 

wild,  as  hay,  133,  166. 
Orchard  grass,  9,  80,  82. 

perenne,  98. 

description  of,  8l. 

var.  italicum,  98. 

seed,  40,  81. 

var.  multiflorum,  98. 

Ornamental  grasses,  153. 

Lygeum  Spartum,  157. 

Palea,  49. 

Maize,  132. 

Pampas  grass,  154. 

Manienie,  76. 

Panicum  barbinode,  109. 

174 


A    MANUAL   OF    FARM    GRASSES 


Panicum  capillare,  166. 
Dactylon,  76. 

Quack  grass,  159,  160. 
eradication  of,  160. 

dichotomiflorum,  166. 

frumentaceum,  125. 

Randall  grass,  IOO. 

italicum,  121. 

Range,    depleted,    rejuvenation 

maximum,  107. 

of,  149. 

miliaceum,  124. 

Ray  grass,  98. 

molle,  109. 

Redtop  9,  13,  77,  78. 

smooth,  166. 

description  of,  79. 

virgatum,  141. 

Natal,  112. 

Paper  -  making,      grasses      for, 

seed  40,  78. 

157- 

Reed  canary  grass,  147. 

Para  grass,  107,  109. 
Paspalum  compressum,  107. 

Reed,  giant,  155. 
Rescue  grass,  107,  108. 

dilatatum,  114,  115. 

Rhizomes,  45. 

Pasture,  16. 

Rhode  Island  bent,  92,  93,  94. 

Bermuda  grass  for,  71. 

seed  of,  93. 

care  of,  32. 

Rhodes  grass,  in,  112. 

carpet  grass  for,  105. 

Ribbon  grass,  154. 

permanent,  18,  32. 

Roots,  45. 

plants,  1  6. 

Rootstocks,  45. 

Pato  de  gallina,  75. 

Rotation,  grass  in,  36. 

Penicillaria  spicata,  126. 

Rough    stalked    meadow    grass, 

Pennisetum  americanum,  126. 

116. 

glaucum,  126. 

Rye  grass,  95. 

purpureum,  118. 

Australian,  98. 

Ruppelii,  155. 

description  of,  97. 

typhoideum,  126. 

English,  95,  96,  97,  98. 

Phalaris  arundinacea,  147. 

Italian,  95,  96,  98. 

var.  picta,  154. 

wild,  167. 

Phleum  alpinum,  58,  145. 

pratense,  58. 

Sacaton,  142. 

Phyllostachys,  155. 

Saccharum  officinarum,  158. 

Pigeon  grass,  122. 
Pine  grass,  145. 

Sacred  grass,  75. 
Sage  bush,  144. 

Plains,  Great,  grazing  on,   122, 

St.  Augustine  grass,  104,  150. 

136. 

for  lawn,  152,  153 

Plume  grass,  154. 

St.  Lucie  grass,  73. 

Poa  arachnifera,  116. 

Salt  grass,  6,  8. 

compressa,  101. 

Sandbinding  grasses,  156. 

nevadensis,  142. 

Sandbur,  165. 

palustris,  117. 

Schrader's  brome  grass,  107. 

pratensis,  70. 

seed,  grass,  37,  40. 

Sandbergii,  144. 

to  determine  purity  of,  38. 

scabrella,  144. 

Scutch  grass,  75. 

serotina,  117. 

Seed  testing,  41. 

triflora,  117. 

Semiarid  region,  13. 

trivialis,  116. 

Setaria  italica,  121. 

Proso,  122,  123,  124. 

Silage,  27. 

Prosopis  juliflora,  136. 

plants,  16. 

INDEX 


175 


Sitanion,  167. 

Soil,  preparation  of  for  meadow, 

30. 
Soiling,  26. 

plants,  16. 

Sorghastrum  nutans,  141. 
Sorghum  14,  126,  128,  129,  157, 
158. 

amber,  127. 

cut  for  forage,  9. 

durra,  128,  129. 

halepense,  89. 

Kafir,  14,  128,  129. 

milo,  14,  128,  129. 

non-saccharine,  128. 

orange,  127. 

saccharine,  127. 

sugar,  127. 
Sorghums,  126. 

key  to  varieties  of,  127. 
Sorgo,  14,  127. 
Sowing  grass  seed,  31. 
Spartina  patens,  147. 
Spikelet,  structure  of,  48,  49. 
Sporobolus  airoides,  141. 

Wrightii,  141. 
Squirrel-tail,  164,  165. 
Stenotaphrum  secundatum,  105. 
Stink  grass,  166. 
Stipa  tenacissima,  157. 
Stolons,  46. 

Sudan  grass,   14,   128,   129,   130. 
Sugar  cane,  157,  158. 
Sugar-producing  grasses,   157. 
Sweet  vernal  grass,  102. 
Switch  grass,  141. 
Syntherisma     ischaemum,     162, 
163 


Syntherisma  sanguinalis,  162. 

Teosinte,  131,  132. 
Tickle  grass,  166. 
Timothy,  53. 

and    clover    mixed,    statistics 
of,  6,  7. 

as  meadow  grass,  55. 

description  of,  57. 

mountain,  145. 

region,  13. 

seed,  40,  57. 

standard  hay  of  market,  26. 

statistics  of,  6,  7. 
Tricholaena  rosea,  113. 
Tunis  grass,  128,  131. 

Velvet  bent,  93,  95. 
grass,  103,  104. 

Water  grass,  114. 
paspalum,  114. 

Weeds,  annual,  162. 

Weeds,  grasses  as,  159. 

Wheat,  Alaska,  2. 
Egyptian,  2. 
grass,  slender,  113,  148,  149. 

western,  146. 
mummy,  2. 

Winter  rains,  region  of,  15. 

Wire  grass  [Bermuda],  75;  [Can- 
ada bluegrass],  102;  [Juncus 
balticus],  140. 

Yorkshire  fog,  104. 
Zea  mays,  132. 


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